My first microscope photo + help with calibration

[pajr777]

Here it is:



It's not much but I'm quite proud

Taken with my iPhone pointing down the ocular of a Brunel scope I have managed to acquire from a colleague for free

It's a gill crush of the nearest available fungi, Agaricus bisporus, stained with Congo Red.

Now, would someone be kind enough to check my calibration maths for me.

I lined up one line on the 0.01mm stage micrometer with the "0" on the far left of the ocular micrometer.

Nine lines across on the stage micrometer lined up with the mark at 9.2 on the ocular micrometer.

Therefore 9.2 units on the ocular micrometer = 0.09mm = 90um
therefore 1 unit on the ocular micrometer = 9.78um

The spore in the photo measures 0.8 units x 0.6 units, which is 7.8um x 5.9um.

Phillips gives 4-7.5x4-5.5um, so my measurements are on the large side, whereas if anything from a gill crush I would expect measurements on the small side, hence my request for a sanity check on my maths!

Thanks in advance.

Edit: Also, I have seen Q av given at the end of spore measurements - what does that represent?

[flaxton]

First the easy bit the Q value given in any of the books refers to the ration of the length (of the spore) to the width a mathematical way of describing the shape.

Your calculations sound right and Funga nordica gives the spore sizes as 6.5-8 x 5.5-6.5 so would fit with your calculated size.

Mal

[SheffieldLass]

Originally Posted by pajr777

Here it is:



It's not much but I'm quite proud

...

Edit: Also, I have seen Q av given at the end of spore measurements - what does that represent?

Excellent. A whole new world is now at your fingertips

As Mal said Q is the ratio of length to width of the spore, so Qav is the average Q value. Sometimes written Q with a line over the top, which is not so easy to do on a post here Hence the use of Qav.

Melanie

[pajr777]

Originally Posted by SheffieldLass

Excellent. A whole new world is now at your fingertips

it's exciting! I should be out and about tomorrow to find some 'real' specimins to have a go with.

Thanks for the info both.

Paul