Tiny Grandeur

The botany class I’m taking has introduced me to the microscopic world. The first time we looked at plant cells under a microscope, I could hardly contain my excitement. The other students were not jumping up and down so I tried to maintain my composure…mostly. There were suddenly a million things I wanted to bring to class so I could see what they looked like 100 times their normal size. A thimble sized ball of moss looked like a huge forest through one microscope, and I can see tiny green packets of chlorophyll floating in plant cells through the other one. It’s all very exciting and sometimes I get carried away with my eye glued to a lens and am the last person cleaning up after class. My professor seems patient and mildly amused, for now. So, when I came across this collection of prize-winning photomicrographs this morning, I thought I would share them with you. There are not very many of them, enough for a few minutes’ break in your day. There are even a couple of plant specimens, so you can see what I’ve been gazing at in class. Digital photography has come a long way and I can’t wait to see what they come up with next. Enjoy:

Tiny Grandeur at Live Science

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Weeds

You’ve all heard me spout off about the virtues of weeds. My daughter, Terri, sent me an article yesterday which has an awesome little slideshow introducing several weeds and their unique personalities. There were a couple I’d never heard of, some I know all too well. I’m busy today getting fitted for a new tooth (YAY!) and running lots of errands, so I will leave you with the article – make sure to check out the slideshow, that’s where the good stuff is. Thanks, Terri!

Here’s the link at Slate.

A sweet little Dandelion I met on the way to school one day.

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