Bugscope: Members Page

Live Session Transcript

Connected on 2009-10-28 12:00:00 from , PA, US

11:43am
Bugscope Team we are setting up

Bugscope Team making presets for today's session

11:49am

12:04pm
Bugscope Team and we are ready to roll...

12:10pm
Bugscope Team Welcome to Bugscope!
Bugscope Team hello!
Bugscope Team please let us know if you need any help.
Bugscope Team and we are here to answer questions
Bugscope Team Hello Mrs Long! Welcome to Bugscope!
Bugscope Team and Mrs. Heilig-Trexler!
Teacher Hi Scot, Mrs. H-T is Laura, Mrs. Prego is Hilary, and Mrs. Long is Cheryl. The kids will be logging in with their names first and then their partner's name second, so it may look funny.
Bugscope Team Sounds great!
Teacher The kids are rolling in right now. Do I have the controls? It looks like it.
12:15pm
Bugscope Team yes you do. please try a preset or a mag change.
Student hi guys
Bugscope Team Hi Luke and Kyle!

Student how big can the bug be
Bugscope Team well if we had a cicada it would be too large, really -- you wouldn't be able to see much else
Student how much did it cost??
Bugscope Team we bought our electron microscope 10 years ago, and it cost about $600,000
Teacher The kids are logging on to the computers right now
Student wow!! :)
12:21pm
Student How did u get into the buisness
Bugscope Team I had an English degree, added Biology, ended up learning electron microscopy before I got out of college.
Student What is this picture
Bugscope Team this is an aphid, and we are looking at one of the cornicles, which stick out of the back. sometimes they produce dew for ants to sip, and sometimes they produce wax, like hot-melt glue, that immobilizes ants rightn away
Student how much would it cost to fix
Bugscope Team we have a service contract that costs $30,000 a year
Teacher Am I here?
Student cool
Student yes Mrs.prego
Student Who first came up with SEM
Bugscope Team the idea probably originated in the 40's, and attempts were made in the 50's to actually do it. the first commercial SEM came out in 1965.
Student wow!
Student hi
Student cool
Student hi
Student how does the microscope make the electrons
Bugscope Team The first SEM image was obtained by Max Knoll, who in 1935 obtained an image of silicon steel showing electron channeling contrast.
Bugscope Team Mrs H-T has control and can change to another preset if she wants.
Student Who first came up with the SEM?
Bugscope Team Max Knoll and his co-worker, Ernst Ruska, invented the electron microscope.- They were Germans
Bugscope Team Aphids can transmit plant diseases and the honeydew the produce can cause mildew to grow on a plant---so aphids are not considered beneficial insects.
Student i hav a question. what bugs are the most interesting to study?
Bugscope Team It kind of depends on the personality of the person studying the insect. You can study almost anything about insects, from the physics of flight, to the way that insect cells use energy, to the way that insects are related to each other, the way they communicate, the way they can resist pesticides. So...that is a really difficult question to answer, and every entomologist would have a different answer!
Student what's the weirdest thing youve ever thing!

Teacher I am switching to the ladybug face right now.
Student In order to look at a specimen through the SEM, does the specimen have to be dead?
Bugscope Team yes dead is preferable. We image in a high vacuum, so either the vacuum would never get to the point it needs to be because the bugs are too juicy and/or the insects would die from the lack of oxygen and the electron beam
Student Annie how long have you bin working with the SEM
Bugscope Team Since 2005
Student why does annie roy like working with long horn beetles?
Bugscope Team Because they are the best insects!! There are thousands and thousands of species of longhorned beetles, and we know very little about them. They range in size from 2mm up to 13 cm, and they eat almost every kind of plant there is. I could go on and on!!
Student hi!
Student why do u like what u do

Bugscope Team Cate looked it up. The first TEM was 1931. It took awhile before SEM worked very well -- 'til the modern version of the secondart electron detector was invented.
Student hi! What is the specimen coated with?
Bugscope Team gold-palladium, about 6 nanometers
Student annie how did you get into the SEM
Bugscope Team I needed to use the SEM for my research on longhorned beetle morphology. And in the process of conducting my research, I started working with Bugscope.
12:26pm
Student which bugs are the most interesting to study?

Bugscope Team plus they would be moving around, which makes it very hard to get a nice image!
Student Why did the institute create bugscope?????
Bugscope Team we wanted to be able to demonstrate a sustainable outreach program that was affordable, after chickscope, which was super expensive
Student Hi Im Frankie Here's my question, What is the largest bug uyou have looked at under a SEM
Bugscope Team We have looked at pieces of a huge tarantula, and we have looked at sections of a large centipede...

Student How many bugs can fit on a slide

Student what isyour favoite specimen u looked at
Student What do u like most about your job
Student How much did it cost to fix
Student annie! we watched a interview about u. wat is the best bug to study? the most interesting, besides the long horn beatle?
Bugscope Team Hahaha, I am famous! I am awfully partial to longhorned beetles. If I didn't study longhorned beetles, I might study scarab beetles.
Student How old is bug scope
Bugscope Team it started in 1999, so it's 10 years old

Student Can you see electrons used in the SEM with the naked eye?
Bugscope Team no you can't see electrons, really, with anything, yet
Student How much does it weigh
Student What do you love to study?
Student where do you get your bugs???
Bugscope Team we find them on the ground, or they are given to us by other schools, or entymologists
Student thank you!!!
Student how long does it take to see the bug and get is ready
Student What is that ?
Student whats your favorite thing about your job?

Student Is the microscope easy to use?
Bugscope Team i think so. The basic controls are pretty simple. And we made the controls for bugscope just as simple

Student annie wat is the coolest bug u researched
Student do you enjoy doing bugscope
Student how much does it cost???????????
Bugscope Team This SEM cost $600,000
Student Hi, I have a question "Why is the SEM so big?"
Student Whats the best bug to study
Student hi i'm derek is there different sizes of the sem
Student Why do Backscattered electrons bounceback from deeper areas
Bugscope Team backscattered electrons are the same ones that hit the sample in the first place, and when they bounce back it is because they have been deflected by the nucleus of an atom in the sample.
Student Why do long horn beatles have those long antenas??
Bugscope Team That is an excellent question!! We think that longhorned beetles have long antennae because the males search for females using their antennae. They recognize females by touch and so there is a selective advantage to having long antennae--the longer your antennae, the larger area you can search. Interestingly, there are longhorned beetles with short antennae as well...they also recognize females by touch, but apparently they don't need super long antennae.

Student How would the air that gets sucked out interfer with the electrons?
Student did you want to do this job?
Student Do you think science is a important subjuct for kids?
Student Why are Scanning electron microscopes different then other microscopes
Student How often do you use a SEM
Student Hi my name is matt. How do you keep the S.E.M running all the time?
Student CateW thanks!
Student ...
Student Annie do u like your job
Student Hi guys ... Caruso Here... Mrs. H-T can you go in closer on this specimen?? Ty
Student How heavy is the electron microscope
Student Hi myname is Alex. how fun is Bugscope????
Student Ooh
Student Y do u like your job?
Student how many electrons r in an electron micrscope
Student What do you love to study the most?
Student hello :)
Student thank u annie. i never thought about it tht way.
Student :)
Teacher This is the ladybug
Student is it hard to do wut u do
Student Why do they suck the air out of the SEM while using it ?
Bugscope Team If there was air we would not be able to collect the secondary electrons
Student do you like ur job
Student Mrs. H-T what are we looking at right now
Student Thanks
Student What kind of bugs will we be look at, oh and thanks for the answer scott

Student about how many bugs do you reserch in a month/day/year
Student mrs ht can you put a bug on screen

Student what do you study
Student Mrs.H-t what other bugs r we going 2 look at
Student What is your favorite bug
Student mrs.ht what part of the lady bud is it
Student why do you study long horn beetles
12:31pm
Student Mrs H-T what is this?
Student thts kool? wat r they like?scarab beetles, ive never heard of them.
Student what is the weirdest thing u have look at under the electron microscope
Student â˜»â˜ºâ˜»â˜ºâ˜»
Student scott do u like the microscope u use
Student What is the coating for the specimen made of?
Bugscope Team We coat our samples with gold-palladium.
Student Wut do u like about the microscope?
Student Wats is like using a SEM?
Student is there a stronger microscope you can use if so, why dont you use it
Student Hello:)
Student Mrs.H-T can you close in on the jaws please.
Student What do you love to study?

Student What is your favorite specimem?
Student hi! i'm mckayla my question is could you brake the meatal covering easly
Student What is your favorite part about researching
Student What helps you study this?

Student what is the favorite part of your job?
Bugscope Team My favorite parts of my job are "discovering" new things, doing field work out in beautiful places, traveling and meeting other scientists who are passionate about their work.
Student How often do you use the SEM
Student How big is the electron microscope?

Student annie what is your favorite bug to look at under sem
Student Wats the most interesting specimen u have ever studied???
Student is the electron microscope FUN
Student How many pounds does a SEM weigh?
Student Annie do you study anything else besides longhorned beatles
Student do you think science is a important subject not just for kid but for grow ups to???? :)
Student anni do u like the microscope u use
Student Who came up with the elecitron mirocope?
Bugscope Team Max Knoll and his co-worker, Ernst Ruska,(both from Germany) invented the electron microscope.
Student hoe\w do you get the specimen in the microscope
Student When did you start using an electron microscope
Bugscope Team I first messed with one in 1982.
Student Y did u choose todo this job?
Student is using the sem fun
Bugscope Team this is super fun

Student Annie do you like using the SEM every day?
Student Annie how many times do u use th SEM
Bugscope Team I haven't used the SEM for my own research since March. I moved away from Urbana, and have been working on other projects since then.
Student Mrs.H-T what was the womans that studied bones with the S.E.M

Student did u ever look at a doggie????????derek

Student why is your job imprtant?
Student sj do you like looking trough the sem
Student i mean spider
Student How close can u look into a cell or another objects?
Bugscope Team The best resolution we can obtain with this microscope is 2 nanometers
Student Why do they have to put metal on the bugs to look at them?
Bugscope Team If we don't coat them with metal, then they won't be conductive and we will see a lot of bright spots on the sample where the electrons are being absorbed and not bounced off

Student Mrs.HT what bug is this???
Student When was the elctron microscope invented
Bugscope Team As Cate says, Ernst Ruska was one of the first people credited with inventing the electron microscope, and usually it is said to be 1931.
Student How does a Scanning electron microscope work???
Student CateW: thank u! its so interesting to know that u can use an electron microscope for more than just bugs and bugscope
Student how much did all this cost
Bugscope Team the microscope cost $600,000 and we have a yearly service contract that costs around $30,000
Student why do you like long horned beetles of all bugs?
Bugscope Team Because they are tremendously diverse and yet we don't know very much about them....and they are beautiful and they squeak.
Student how many parts does the microscope have â˜º

Student how many parts the microscope have?
Student Mrs.H-T can you show a picture of a bone cell
Student Do you like studing bugs
Student why do u coat the bugs with gold-palladium?
Student How many times can a mircoscope zoom in?
Student why do you like your job?
Student What do you love to study????
Student Annie, when and why did you choose your job??
Student Is it complicated to figure out how to usethe microscope
Student Annie what made you want to study bugs
Bugscope Team I always enjoyed being outside and playing in the dirt and mud. When I was a senior in high school, we did a unit on aquatic entomology in my biology class...and I was smitten. I had this ah-hah moment where I knew that I wanted to study insects for my job.
Student Annie who invented the SEM
Student have you ever looked at a dung bettle
Student How many pounds does an SEM weigh?
Student Is iteasy to usea SEM, maybe, i dnt kno
Bugscope Team Yes, if you were sitting in front of it, I could teach you the basic controls in about 5 minutes probably
Teacher We are now going to be looking at a House Fly Head 65X its normal size.
Teacher hello Bugscope! It's nice to see your site.
Student what is this
Student why do u coat the bugs in gold-palladium?
Student CateW thats cool
Student can u go closer mrs.ht
Student Could you close in on the mouth
Student wow thats soo cool
Student whats your fav part of your job
Student that bug looks weird
Student pls
Student Alex-Matt:When did u start useing bugscope?
Student How do know when the coating is done?
Student Do you think using an electron microscope is easy
Bugscope Team So long as you don't have to repair it, it is easy to use. It is kind of like controlling a video gmae.

12:36pm
Student it is costly to mantian
Student What is that Mrs. H-T
Student What does the SEM run on?]
Student what other microscopes do you use, and do you use it more often??? thanks!!!!
Bugscope Team transmission electron microscope (TEM), lots of light microscopes, and the atomic force microscope (AFM)
Student this bug freaks me out!!!
Student how does the electron microscope work?
Teacher This is the head of a house fly
Student what is your favorite bug
Bugscope Team I like bees and wasps. They have cool parts like stingers
Student Mrs. H-T can you zoom in on the leg of the fruit fly
Student that is kind of scary can you zoom in on the mouth Mrs.H-t

Student thx for the answer that is very helpful thx!
Student Anne, do you reaserch scorpions to??
Bugscope Team Nope, no scorpions, although occasionally I get them in my beetle traps.
Student mrs ht can u go alittle bit closer
Student How does the vacuum work?
Student awesome it looked really big. mrs.prego
Bugscope Team there is the fly's tongue to the middle-left
Student Annie did you have the travel to get you sample?
Bugscope Team I have had to travel to get many of my samples. I conducted most of my PhD research in California, when I lived in Illinois
Student Annie who invened the SEM
Student annie how old were you when you started working with the SEM??
Student what if we did not have microscopes
Bugscope Team We wouldn't know much about small things. It would not be so good, hard to imagine...
Student was this what you wanted to be when you grew up
Student how many elctrons does it have
Student what do you like to study more bone or tissue?
Student That is very interesting
Student thx mrs ht
Student How long have you been doing this job?????
Bugscope Team 11 years here.
Student How many different bugs do you study in a day
Student The sem was a lot of money!!!!!!!!!!!
Student Mrs. H-T, can you zoom in on the fly's eye please?

Student Thats interesting Scot, Kool

Student have you been on a live chat before
Student annie do you like doing those vidioes to tell us what we do
Bugscope Team I only did that one video, and it was fun to make the video. I am glad you all watched it ;)
Student HAVE YOU EVER LOOKED AT SOMTHING UNDER THE MICROSCOPE ALIVE?!!!!!
Student what is the max. magnification of a sem
Student How many times can a microscope zoom in?
Student Why is the micrscope so exspensive?
Student what is you favorite thing about the microscope
Bugscope Team it has very good resolution and is versatile; it also lets us do elemental analysis
Student thank u annie
Student what is the bigget bug evvvvvvvver
Student did u ever brake the SEM
Student whow many bugs have u looked at?
Student ick! that looks gross!!!
Student mrs ht can you zoom in on the side of the mouth

Student why do you think your job is interesting
Student thanks scot
Student looks like a cactas
Student how much does it weigh
Student that's awesome
Student when were sem's they invented
Student Thats a great story Annie!
Bugscope Team Thanks
Bugscope Team game
Student wow
Student Annie who invented the SEM?
Bugscope Team Um, I think Cate said Ernst Ruska
Student Annie do you like what you do??????
Student how many bugs can fit on a slide
Student cool thats how old i am
Student How long have you been working with bugs Annie?
Student Thank u so much 4 answering
Student how much does the SEM coast
Student Did you buy the sem or some 1 else?
Student how much does the electron microscope cost
Student Alexis wrote that!
Student do you reaserch scorpions too??
Bugscope Team sometimes
Student what is that up top
Student Annie wat do u like about the mocroscope?
Student What is the weirest thing you have ever looked at Alex
Student Annie did you use other microscopes other than the SEM if so what one??? thanks!

Student THIS IS COOL
Student Your guys job must be so cool i mean you get to look at so many things like BUGS AND ROCKS?
Student Would you say your job is fun?
Bugscope Team this is super fun
Student How many pounds is an SEM Annie?
Student Alex
Student how much can it manified?
Bugscope Team higher than 200,000x but that is about the limit of publishable images

Student sj who invented the SEM
Student did you buy it
Student what is your favorite part of yoyr job?
Student thanks scot
Student Have you ever seen a shirt under an electron microscope\
Student How many times can a microscope zoom in?
Student what is your favorite part of your job?
Student whats the power source of the SEM because it uses it own what is it
Student How heavy is the SEM?
Bugscope Team I think about 4000 lbs.
Student what do you love to study the most?
Student whoa whats that?
Student THAT LOOKS WEIRD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Student What year was the electron microsope made in
Student what is the biggest thing u looked at
12:41pm
Student do you think we are annoying cause we ask so many q's
Bugscope Team we try to answer as many as we can.
Student sj: hi! do you need a collage degree for studying bugs and the electron microscope?
Bugscope Team it helps because you need to understand the details of other people's work in order to be able to better help them
Student how does a SEM work
Student what is an atom
Student Mogan what was that
Student what is the machine called that you use to coat the specimen?

Student How much does each specimen wiegh and is it cooler to you by looking at it with the naked eye or with the SEM
Teacher We are sorry about Jack/Derke
Student how many SEMs r in the world
Student would you ever change your job?
Bugscope Team I would write less. I write a lot...
Teacher *Derek
Student sorry
Student did you do good in school????????????????????????????????????????????????????:)
Bugscope Team Yes, I did well in school, although I didn't get straight As until graduate school

Student how many bugs do you research in a month week and year
Student sorry mrs ht
Student Your welcome
Student What do you like about your job
Student this is so cool

Student it was me jack\
Student lol What bugs will we be looking at?
Student how much power does it take to keep the S.E.M running
Student Where did you go to college
Student is using the microscope hard scott
Bugscope Team no it is very straightforward -- you could do it
Student Yes it is Ivy
Student srry
Student how many parts are in the microscope?
Student how ofton do you use the SEM??
Student hi
Teacher Hey kids, remember to read the chat so you aren't repeating questions which have already been answered.
Student HI ANNIE HAVE YOU EVER LOOKED AT SOMETHING UNDER THE MICROSCOPE THAT WAS ALIVE????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Student Is that still a house fly Mrs.H-T
Student Whats ur favorite part of the SEM
Student how long did it take for u to get used to using the microscope/microscopes
Student Annie do you like all the bugs that you have worked with????
Student whats the power source of the SEM because it uses it own what is it
Student blah b
Student how much closer does a Scanning electron microscope get from other microscopes
Student where did you go to college?
Student is using the microscope confusing at first??????
Student how many parts r in the microscope?
Teacher Yes, it is still the housefly. My computer is VERRRYY slow, so there is a bad delay on what I'm doing.
Student how does a SEM work scot
Student How would the air in the slide interfer with the electrons?
Student Heyy Annie How is the SEm controlled
Student Annie, do you study other insects besides long horn beetles?
Bugscope Team Nope, I am completely devoted to longhorned beetles at this time

Student how many bugs can you fit on a slide
Student did you want to do this when you were young scott
Bugscope Team no but I am glad I kind of fell into it
Student Kaela wrote that
Student Thats sad
Student scott how long have you worked with the SEM
Student Where did you go to college is it a college where researcing bugs is one of the main things they do in science
Bugscope Team I went to a small liberal arts school for college, and no one at my school worked on insects (although one guy did work on communication in spiders). THen I went to graduate school at the University of Illinois in an entomology department where everyone studied insects
Student who created bugscope
Bugscope Team a team of us, in 1998/1999
Student Is using a SEM easy?
Student how much closer does a scanning electron microscope get from other microscopes

Student What would happen if the bugs were alive in the machine? Would they die?
Student What is the most fun part of preparing a SEM
Student Mrs.H-T can you answer my qeustion now please???
Student Mrs. H-T can you look at the leg
Student Scot how often do u go on live chat
Student ALEX DO YOU LIKE YOUR JOB ALOT????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

Student were did you get the SEM?
Student looks like a cactus
Student Annie do you like scottt more than bugs
Bugscope Team That is a close one ;)
Student scot: hi! would i need a collage degree to do wat all of u do?
Student what is your favorite part of your job?
Student ok scot
Student What made you like this job scot?
Teacher Dawson - stop asking those questions
Student how many bugs can fit on a slide
Bugscope Team that depends on the size of the insects. I like to have at least 5 insects, but it's better if there are more. I try to fit on as many as I can
Student Hey sj how many times were u on this
Bugscope Team 500 to 600 I think
Student what is an atom
Bugscope Team It's okay I kind of started it.
Student what is that
Student Annie how long is a longhorned beatles horn
Student what is the uglyest thing you ever look at
Student Whats that?
Student sj
Student Why does the sem only focus on the disc
Bugscope Team it has about a 50-mm range laterally
Student how many elctrons does it have
Student How many Times can a microscope zoom in???
Student thanks scot 8)
Student how much closer does a scanning electron miroscope get from a regular microscope
Student WOW
Student how do u turn on the microscope?
Bugscope Team it is on all of the time
Student Mrs.ht can we look at spiders sorry again mrs.ht
Bugscope Team we don't have any spiders today, sorry
Student wuts that
12:46pm
Student DO YOU LIKE STUDYING BUGS?
Student how long did you go to college to have this job
Student what helps you study/
Bugscope Team being interested, and realizing how connected many things are -- the more you know the more interesting everything is
Student thxfor answering my questions :D
Student Why do you like to study tissues and bones ?
Student Do you know what bugs we will be looking at Scot?
Student Scot do you like prepairing th speciemens
Student Do you use a SEM every day
Student do u enjoy working together?
Student Can you put like 10 bugs in the SEM at one time?????
Bugscope Team If they are small enough, sure
Teacher Asking for Joseph: How does the paint help you see the bugs better?
Bugscope Team yes it is a thin film of gold-palladium, and we really cannot see it at the normal magnifications. it keeps the sample from charging up with electrons
Student Whats ur fav part of using a SEM scot?
Student who is your favorite friend to work with scot
Student how long is a day at work for you scott
Student why do you coat the bugs in metal and gold
Student wat is it like to use a SEM?
Student Who was the person that made the SEM?
Teacher Was anything new found using the SEM that was not noticable with more traditional microscopes?
Bugscope Team yes, many things I'm sure, but a more bug-related thing discovered was brochosomes. They are tiny balls that are like soccer balls produced only by leafhoppers.
Student Annie, do you studie any other animals besides long horn beetles?
Bugscope Team nope, just longhorned beetles.
Student can u fit a hole butterfly on the scope
Student how long have you had the micrscope?
Student what microscope do you use the most
Student Why are the pictures in black and white?
Student Wow the fly head looks weird...
Student scot, what is the most fun part of using a SEM
Bugscope Team pulling focus in for people
Student how many bugs do you view a day
Student how long is a day at work annie
Student scot do you like the sem or the speciemens
Student Heyy Scot What is ur favorite bug to look at?
Bugscope Team earwigs
Student Annie how old were you when you stared
Bugscope Team I started using the SEM when I was 23 years old.
Student when you were little did you want to be a scientist our was it till you were younger
Bugscope Team When I was little I wanted to sing and dance and act in musicals--I didn't come to my senses until I was 17 ;)
Student Mrs. Prego, what is the S.E.D?
Student did u guys do anythimg today besides this?
Bugscope Team yeah we have a lot of other microscopes to help people with, plus other equipment
Student How did you get into microscopes scot?
Student thx for the answer
Student when did BUG SCOPE START WITH kids and teachers having chats like this?
Student Why are the pictures in black and white??
Student Scot, What is an earwing?
Student how many parts does the microscope have
Teacher Sorry, I got logged off. I am going to move to the fly's eye.
Student ANNIE HOW LONG IS A DAY AT WORK FOR YOU
Student What was the most interesting thing you ever saw in the sem?
Student annie? to use the electron microscope like you, would i need a collage degree? if so, what kind?

Student what is an atom

Student annie what is you favorite bug except the long horned beetle
Bugscope Team I like scarab beetles (including dung beetles) and I like owlflies.
Student how many bugs do you reaserch in a week,month,year
Student wat bug did u look at today
Student earwig**
Student Mrs.H-T: okayyyy
Student Scot what is your favorite specimen to study
Bugscope Team lately I have been interested mosquitos, a bit
Student what is your favorite bug??
Student Annie what is your favorite bug to study
Student how long did you have to go to collage Annie
Student How many times can a Microscope zoom in?
Student the fly's eyes look like honey combs
Bugscope Team yes they are usually hexagons, which is the best shape for the individual facets, called ommatidia, to be shaped to fit the curvature of the eye
Student Scott

Student What is cargeing
Student hey annie do you like looking at bugs other than the long horn bettle
Student Annie, how long have u been looking at longhorn beatles?
Bugscope Team I have been working on longhorned beetles since 2003, when I started graduate school
Student ANNIE HOW LONG IS A DAY AT WORK FOR YOU
Student how ofton do you have chats??
Student Scot, What kind of bug is an earwig, if you have one can u show it?
Bugscope Team they have a pincer tail, but we don't have one in the 'scope today
Student Annie why are the bugs in the microsoft, black and white?
Student Thanks annie
Student do u like your job

Student Annie why did you get in to useing SEM
Bugscope Team I wanted to examine very small pores on the prothoraces of longhorned beetles. The SEM was the way to do that.
Student *Carging
Student Scot, what is your favorite part of what you do?
Student scot? is it boring answarin tons and tons of questions?
Student what is the hardest part of your job CateW
Student Do you have a picture of a tarantula
Student is there different kinds od stages on the sem?
Student how do you look at the specimen on the SEM? On the computer screen or through an eyepiece?
Student why can't we see small details without a micoscope
Student Is there a way to p operate the SEM manually?
Bugscope Team not very well
Student TO USE AN ELECTRON MICROSCOPE LIKE U, WOULD I NEED A DEGREE IN COLLAGE? IF SO, WHAT DEGREE?
Bugscope Team it would be helpful to have a biology or engineering or physics degree, but anyone can learn how to run it
Student different sizes?
12:51pm
Student Annie whats your favorite part about the SEM?
Bugscope Team That it is relatively easy to use and to get a good image you don't have to cut your specimen into very small pieces and stain it with toxic chemicals
Student How many times can the microscope magnify?
Student Wats the most interesting specimen that u studied
Student Annie, How long have you been working in the microscope buisness?
Student scot how long have you been looking at bugs
Student what is the smallest electron microscope
Student Annie, have you always worked in your postion or have you worked on different bugs rocks ect.
Student Annie, how much closer does a scanning electron microscope get from a regular microscope

Student What enguraged you to do this job?
Student Mrs.HT what is this??
Student CateW what is the biggest discovery you have made
Bugscope Team I dont think I have made any discoveries. I'm not that important
Student Cool i'll look it up later on the net!
Student what is your favorite specimen to examine with a electron microscope

Student Mrs.H-T haha good one
Student HOW MANY SCHOOLS HAVE YOU CHATTED WITH
Student Mrs HT what kind of fly is this
Student Do you all have specailties in your job? like certain bugs and stuff like that.
Bugscope Team everyone here has things that she/he does best
Student cate wat kind of microscope do you use
Bugscope Team I am in charge of this microscope-SEM and the TEM (transmission electron microscope)
Student thank you
Student Wats the most interestingspecimen that u studied
Student thanks Mrs.H-T
Student how many bugs do you study in one day
Student What is ur least favorite specimen to look at Annie?
Bugscope Team I think that cockroachs and cicadas are not very interesting--they are too big
Student oh ok thank you
Student Is it hard to buy a SEM these days?
Bugscope Team if anything, they are easier. They are more computer based. Not too long ago you would have to take polaroids, instead of getting a digital image. EM's are more computer based
Student what is your favorite type of magnifying object to use annie
Student how many eyes does a fly have
Student what is your favorite bug???

Student wats the most interesting specimen u studied ever
Student thats interesting what is your favorite rock to look at
Teacher Look at all those hexagonal-like figures!
Student how hard was it to get your job scot
Student is that the eye
Student DOES IT FREAK YOU OUT WORKING WITH BUGS
Student CateW, how much closer does a scanning electron microscope get than other micoscopes
Student Mrs.HT this is so cool!! it looks like nemos brothersd and sisters
Student anne wat bugs have you viewed today
Student thanks for answering my qeustion CateW
Student Wats the most interesting specimen u ever studied scot?
Student What are owl flies
Bugscope Team They look a lot like antlions. They have long antennae and big eyes and they are predators of other insects. They are really beautiful.
Student mrs. H-T go back out it's creeping me out
Student I cant believe a flies eye is made out of tons of smaller eyes
Student what is different between the regulur microscope and the SEM
Student thats a cool pic
Student thats so cool
Student thanks for the answer Scott!
Bugscope Team You will also notice some little spikes jutting out of the eye
Student scot what is you favorite type of microscope
Bugscope Team probably the TEM, but I like SEM a lot
Student the eyes look like a bunch of tvs
Teacher I am going to move to the honeybee drone I so we can compare them.
Bugscope Team those are little hairs called setae (see-tee)

Student thnx
Bugscope Team the honeybee eye has lots of setae
Teacher honeybee dron eye, I meant.
Student Annie What enguraged you to do this job?
Student is there a way you can get it in color using the sem
Bugscope Team the color would have to be added -- artificial
Student Annie, What bugs have you looked at before the longhorn beetle, were you devoted to them?
Bugscope Team I worked with ants briefly before I worked on longhorned beetles.
Student Why do u use the microscope so much
Student Cate W,how much closer does a scanning microscope get than a regular microscope?
Bugscope Team since we are using electrons to image, rather than photons, we can get a much better resolution, around 2 nanometers for this SEM and even better thn that with our TEM. The best resolution for one of our light microscopes is somewhere in the micrometers.
Student Wats the most interesting specimen u have ever studied, Scot????
Bugscope Team I think recently it was cool to see all of the mosquito mouthparts
Student Whoo Mrs.ht this fly eye is so cool its like 10000 other eyes to make 1 that fly must get a headache
Student thx
Student I TOLD POISON IVY 2 WRITE THAT IT LOOKS LIKE NEMO'S BROTHER'S 'N SISTERS
Student CateW: thanks i was wondering that
Student Alex what do you study
Student How far can a sem see/
Student mrs.h-t: the picture of the fly's eye will not show up on my computer screen
Student cateW what are those little spikes?
Student Is there a tick on this? If there is could you go to it
Teacher Asking for Joseph: Do you put live bugs under the bugscope?
Student ANNIE- IS USING THE SEM EASY
Student Whats the difference between TEM and SEM?
Student WOW-
Student Hi Scot, have you ever researched termites?
Bugscope Team we've had them in the 'scope before, but it was just to look at
Student CateW i read on the internet there are 3 different types of SEMs is that true?
Student Annie do you answer questions like this on a daily basis
Bugscope Team Not on a daily basis, only when I help with Bugscope.
Student annie, is the TEM. stronger than the SEM?
Student thank you scot
Student joe: good question
Teacher Jess, hit F5 to refresh your screen. It is just a little slow.
Student ok

Student Cate W, wat is your favorite specimen...?
Student thats kewl
Student Annie is your favorite bug to look at the longhorn beattles?????
Bugscope Team yes, for sure
Student is a bugs eye made up of little eyes

Student woahhh the picture is soooo cool
Student CateW WAT IS UR FAV TYPE OF MICROSCOPE
Bugscope Team probably this one, the SEM
Student sj is your job better than most peoples in your opinoin
Bugscope Team yes I think so
Student Annie, Have you looked at other bug besides the longhorn beetle? Where you devoted to them?
12:56pm
Student How does it feel when you discover a new thing with a micorscope
Student What was the most ineresting thing you discovered?
Student How did u get into bugs Alex?
Bugscope Team I think Alex is at a lunch for someone, still.
Student What is that picture of
Bugscope Team This is the drone's compound eye, with lots of hairs sticking out between the ommatidia
Student WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITEBUG?
Student OMG Mrs.H-T what is that
Student Mrs.ht is there a tick on here??
Student ty
Student Lol :D

Student r those hairs on the Honeybee's eye
Student are those hairs going out of the eye
Bugscope Team yes they are. This bee is covered in them!
Student Annie, if you were not a scientist, what would you do instead?
Student wow whats that Mrs. HT?
Student wheredo you get the bugs
Student CateW i read on the internet that there are 3 different types of SEM is that true
Student IT IS HAIRY
Student are the hiars used for anything
Student no dawson its a fly
Student How many times can a microscope magnify???????
Bugscope Team depends on the microscope, but the TEM can go over 800,000x; the SEM no more than about 200,000x for publishable images
Student what was the last specimen you examined
Student where are you guys working at this very moment
Student Cool
Student Hey Mrs. H-T whats the womans name who studies bones and tissues ?
Student r u watching the microspope when mrs.h.t moves the control
Student CateW have you ever looked at a live bug under the microscope?!
Student what is an atom
Student Mrs. H-T, cnayou do a bee wing next?
Student Annie what do you look for whith the longhorn bettles?
Bugscope Team I looked for these little pores that are present on the prothoraces of male longhorned beetles, but absent from the prothoraces of female longhorned beetles. We hypothesize that the males with these pores produce volatile pheromones.
Student thanks anne
Student scott what is your favorite bug to look at
Student thank you
Teacher All of the presets of the bugs we have are to the right of the chat. Scroll down to look at them all. This is a honeybee's eye.
Student if u discover a new bug or something indide of it do u get 2 name it????derek
Student WHat other bugs have you look at besides Longhorn Beetles annie?
Student Scot, Why do u use the microscope so much?
Bugscope Team it's my job!
Student Cate why do u do what u do
Bugscope Team I do it because I love science and I love to figure out how things work

Student what is your favorite bug to research
Student Mrs.H-T what is that
Student This is a tick right?
Bugscope Team Dude this is the compound eye of a drone bee
Student can you do a bee wing next mrs. h-t?

Student Scot, What enguraged you to do this job??
Student what is that?
Student Alex-Matt:Scott, how long is your shift
Bugscope Team we don't really have a shift but work around 9 hours a weekday
Student CateW i read on the internet there are 3 different types of SEM is that true
Bugscope Team it's possible. There is ESEM, or Environmental SEM, that I know is for sure a type of SEM, so it's possible
Student sj what is your job??
Student it looks like a cat toy its pretty interesting your jobs must be awsome
Student =D scot thts funny!
Student How do you put the bug's in the container and then coat them????
Student thanks cateW
Student sam heeheehee
Student scot, what is the maximum magnifycation of a SEM?
Student Scot why did you pick the job you do?
Bugscope Team It was an accident, but a fortunate one. I did not want to be an English teacher.
Student hey CateW are those hairs used for anything
Bugscope Team The hairs on the eye are probably to help it tell which way the currents are blowing, other hairs will help it feel around, and most of the hairs we see help it to catch pollen grains
Student Scot, What bug do u like looking at the best??
Student hi
Student Scot Im a girl...
Student do you have specific insects that you study for work

Student have big time scientists come to look at the electron microscope
Student What time does your work day start in the moning
Bugscope Team 7:30 or so
Student What was the interesting thing you descovered??????????????
Student did u want 2 do this when u were a kid
Student can we look at a tick
Student Scott, do you enjoy using the SEM?
Student Annie how many years of collage did you have to go through
Student is that a bees eye ?
Student where do you put the bug in the SEM????
Student Hello
Student Scott, do you have to get up early in the morning to to what you do?

Student CateW wat bug do you want to view that you havent
Bugscope Team Oh Sam I am sorry. Dudette.
Student when does your day end
Teacher Not that being an English teacher is bad, right Scot?!!
Bugscope Team heh. No I love reading, and if it's not your job it is sometimes that much more fun. Plus I edited scientific publications for 17 years, and art essays, while I was doing electron microscopy as a technician.
Student do u like ur job
Student lol
Student your cool scot
Student CateW what is your favorite bug to research
Bugscope Team I like wasps and bees. They have lots of cool parts to look at sometimes
Student what bug is that
Student lol
Student did you buy the SEM od did some1 else?
Student how long do you work every day? Annie?
Student Annie What bugs have you looked at before the longhorn beetle, where you devoted to them?
Student how much does the SEM weigh
1:01pm
Student what is that
Student awesome that is so cool
Student Thats ok Scot.
Student is there a pro in scientists because that would be so beast
Student Thanks CateW

Student Thx for answers Scot and i have 1 more question y did u choose this job

Student annie what is your favorite microscope to use on the job
Student how many electrons does it have
Student ok this is kool o.O
Teacher Ivy, this is still the honeybee drone
Student How many hours do u work a week Annie?
Student what is an atom
Student what is your favorite spcimen any one?
Student When you put the bug in the SEM are they dead or alive
Student that looks like something from a horror movie
Student What is the BIGGEST thing you've looked at through the SEM?
Bugscope Team a pair of pliers

Student What if the continer where you put the bugs on the SEM get's stuck????
Student why does the SEM cost so much
Bugscope Team it is very complex -- a very complicated machine

Student honey bee drone?
Student Do electron microscopes break easily Annie?
Bugscope Team Hahaha, they can if you mistreat them!
Student Mrs.Ht thanks!
Student chase:an atom makes up EVERYTHING. an atom is in living and none liveing things...
Student Cate W wat is ur favorite specimen?
Student how many electrons does it have
Student WOW

Student Oh thank you Annie

Student scott what is your favorite thing about bugs
Bugscope Team they have such great detail, and they are life forms quite different from ours. it is cool to see how insects solve the problems of breathing, etc., compared to us.
Student I never knew a bee was that hairy
Student Mrs H-T this is still the honneybee woo that things freaky i aintmessing with bees anymore could you go on the stinger
Student what is an atom
Student did you want to be this when you were little
Student be sorry
Student How careful do you have to ve
Student CateW what enguaged you to do this job???
Student What's the biggest thing that u fit on the plate
Student Hey scot Whats the best bug to study
Student d u go trough
Student Annie have you ever looked at something under the microscope that was alive
Bugscope Team The SEM? I once looked at a tiger beetle larva that was not completely dead. He was dead by the time I took him out of the microscope. In all fairness, I thought he was dead.
Student CateW wat bug do you want to view that u havent
Bugscope Team I'm not sure. that's a tough one. There are so many insects out there that I probably don't even know about. The coolest insects are the ones with specialized parts. Like fruit flies
Student what happens if the bug were put in the sem alive?
Student thx
Student thx
Teacher I am trying to move down to the stinger. This is its thorax, I believe (belly)
Student what is that
Student Annie how many bugs do you study?
Student When does bugscope use the SEM thanks ppl for answering my questions!!!

Student thank you
Student Scot do you use any other microscopes
Bugscope Team mostly the transmission electron microscope (TEM)
Student CateW,how does a Scanning electron microscope work
Student What do you see if you don't put the paint on?
Student Scot, Annie wat is your favorite bug?
Student what is that thing
Student Mrs. H-T could you get an image on the whole thing
Student what is that
Student Scot is any other type of SEM's?
Bugscope Team yes this is actually called an ESEM although we are using it as an SEM today
Student What encouraged all of you guys to become scientists whas it your scienc teacher?
Teacher A honeybee :)
Student CateW how does it feel when you discover something new about a bug
Student Do you kill the bugs or do you find them dead?
Bugscope Team we sometimes receive live insects that we have to "put to sleep" usually by freezing
Student Annie how many different bugs do you study?
Bugscope Team Right now I am working on projects dealing with about 10 species of longhorned beetles in slightly different capacities.
Student ok
Teacher Sorry for the smiley face!!
Student Annie Whats ur favorite bug besides the longhorn?
Bugscope Team I like scarab beetles and owlflies

Student If you do kill the bugs, how
Student how many days of the week do you work!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Student Mrs.prego no smiles
Teacher It's okay, Mrs. Prego, you can be happy as a math teacher!
Student what does that use?
Student scot what is an atom
Bugscope Team an atom is the smallest thing that you can call an element. it has a nucleus with protons and neutrons, and it has an electron shell. the numbers of those components make it what it is, from hydrogen on up.
Student this bug is SOO cool
Student Scot do u like ur job
Student cate what is the favorite specimem to look at
Bugscope Team probably bees and wasps
Student scot do you work alone or with a partner???

Student â˜º
Student HAVE you ever used the SEM on any thing other than bugs?
Student HOW MANY PARTS R IN THE MICROSCOPE
Bugscope Team so many parts that our service engineer had a hard time finding the problem when our microscope was down for 2 weeks!
Student Cate W what is you favorite bug
Student is science more import for kid or grown ups or both
Student what are pheromone traps
Bugscope Team They are these traps that are baited with a pheromone. A pheromone produced by one insect that attracts other insects of the same species, like a great cologne. Beetles are attracted to the pheromone and fall into the trap. And I collect them. perfume that attracts
Student Woops accident sorry!
Student Ydid uchoose this jobscot last question
Student cool
1:06pm
Student cool
Student Scott do you like what you do a lot or a little?????
Student Scott, Annie or CateW.How does a scanning electron microscope work
Student where do u get your bugs from
Student CateW what do you do with bugs
Bugscope Team i put the insects on the specimen stub and stick it in the microscope. The I answer as many of yours and other students' questions as I can. That is the extent of my work with insects
Student whoa whats that?!?!
Student ok
Student lolz
Student do you guys have science parteners
Student OMG this thing is awsomeâ˜º can we check out a picture of a deer tickâ˜º?
Student yes

Student Scot whats an Esem
Student CateW how often do you use the SEM
Bugscope Team I will use it around 5 times a week or so. I use it mostly for bugscope. But other times I will use it to train other users like students to use, or I will image samples that people pay us to image for them
Student how many bugs do you reaserch in a week
Student y did u choose this job scot?
Bugscope Team I was excited about being able to run this microscope again. I had one at my previous job.
Student â˜»â™£â™¦=HI
Teacher We are now looking at the honeybee's legs and wing.
Student Scott, do you like your job? why or why not?
Student â˜»â™£â™¦â™ =Hi
Student do u
Student good question chase
Student why is the S.E.M so complacatedto run
Student how is the mocroscope able to see all of the details?
Bugscope Team the electron beam is very fine, and with a fine probe like that you can see things that are so very small. it's like feeling things with your fingers versus feeling things wearing mittens.
Student Cool Annie What have you looked at besides the longhorn? Where you devoted to them at one time?
Student Annie, do you like looking at bugs every day?
Bugscope Team I do. I really like studying insects.
Student Scot how often do you use the SEM
Student How Did you get intrested into bugs Scot?
Student annie? does this get tiring after a while? i mean having us ask u TEN ZILLION questions?
Bugscope Team No, I like to be busy...it keeps me thinking and keeps me on my toes. It is much easier than writing, which is what I will be doing once we are finished here
Student CateW, how does a scanning eletron microscope work?
Bugscope Team Electrons are produced are heating up a filament (like a lightbulb) and they are passed along using magnetic apertures where they eventually come and hit the sample. Secondary electrons are bounced out of the sample and are collected by the secondary electron detector, which then gives us a topographical image of what we are looking at
Student ...â™£
Student CATEW:ONE DAY U ALL SHOULD SIT DOWN AND COUNT LOL
Bugscope Team maybe if the microscope ever dies and we scrap it I will
Student Annie what is your favorite bug?
Bugscope Team Very favorite is Rosalia funebris, the banded alder borer. I like all the species in the genus Rosalia. They are longhorned beetles, of course.
Student DO YOU

Student ...â˜»

Student do you like using the SEM
Student ...Â¥\
Student lol\
Student Could we look at a ladybug PALP because that thing looks like a worm cut in halfâ™¦
Student ;)
Student sorry about that Liam is not a good question asker,what is your favorite microscope?
Student scot wat bugs have you seen today
Bugscope Team just what is here, plus a mole cricket
Student CateW does your job ever get boring
Student ...

Student J

Student Scot, when did bugscope start to use the sem????
Student Thx for all the answers scot u r very helpful i will talk to u later plz reply
Student ????????
Student SCOTT HOW MANY YEARS OF COLLEGE HAVE U DONE
Bugscope Team only 4 or 5, but I took a long time
Student how many years of collage have u beenin
Bugscope Team Four years of undergrad, six years of graduate school=10 years of college
Student Annie, how many electrons does it have
Student ...please
Student Scott, do you like your job? why or why not?
Student haha
Student ooops
Student what is your favorite part about being a scientist

Student thank u! im glad we arnt boring
Student CAN WE SEE NEMO AGAIN?
Student Scott, do you like your job? why or why not?
Student Annie why is the S.E.M seen so complicated to run
Bugscope Team The science is complicated, but the machine is very easy to use.
Student scot wat is a mole cricket
Student what is your favorite specimen
Student CateW what is your bug that you study or is it not a bug??
Student wat would happen if the bug was aliev in the microscope
Student HAVE you guys ever worked with eachother ?
Bugscope Team Yes, I conducted my research at the Beckman Institute and worked with Scott and Cate, who helped me with the scope.
Student after your done with the bug where do you put them

Student
Student NEMO'S UGLY
Student Scot, What bugs will we be looking at, do you know?

1:11pm
Student ANNIE WHAT ABOUT U HOW MANY YEARS OF COLLEGE
Bugscope Team 10 years total=4 undergrad+6 graduate schoole
Student Scott, do you like your job? why or why not?
Student CateW does your job ever get boring? I mean look at bugs all day, doesn't that ever get boring
Bugscope Team I dont just look at insects all day unless there is a very long bugscope session on that day. It varies what I look at, so it never gets boring for me
Student Scott, do you like your job? why or why not?
Student have you put livebugs in the scope?
Bugscope Team yes we put a chrysalis in one time, and later the butterfly hatched out
Student the house fly looks like nemos bros but this looks more detailed and longer
Student CateW wat is a mole cricket
Bugscope Team Mole crickets are omnivores, feeding on larvae, worms, roots, and grasses. They are nocturnal and live in the ground
Student please tell me that thats a honey comb and not a fly eye
Student why are you guys talking about nemo
Student wow

Student Mrs.HT what does the hilights mean Red, Green
Student 3
Student hexagons
Student scot, how many electrons does it have
Student 10 years? omg tht is a BIG number
Bugscope Team Tell me about it! Really, it was fun for the most part. I liked school.
Student Mrs.Ht could you go on the aphid proboscis opening
Student mrs.h-t wat is that
Student Mrs. H-T are there more pictures?????
Student Scot does your job ever get boring. I mean look at bugs all day, doesn't it ever get boring.

Student How does a SEM work
Student Annie do you like studying bugs?
Bugscope Team I had better, it is too late to turn back now.
Student can you put live bugs in the electron microscopes
Student Wow, Mrs. H-T that moth eye looks really diferent from the honeybee and the fly!
Student The eye of the moth looks bigger than the house fly's and it looks like there are less eyes
Student lindsey a moth
Student this is so pimpin i love looking at the bugs i feel like a scientist
Student ABOUT HOW MANY ? DO U ANSWARE ADAY?
Teacher Still hexagons!!
Student those bugs look a LOT different
Student wow
Student Scott, do you like your job? why or why not?
Bugscope Team it is cool to work in the lab and see all of the new stuff that will be coming out -- all of the things that now exist only as research, and some of which will end up being products, devices, circuits, new inventions
Student annie what do you love to study the most?
Student Annie do you like studying bugs?
Student Is this still the moth's eye
Student leaves

Student Scot,dude whats your fav bug?
Student Annie do you like studying bugs?
Student Annie do you like studying bugs?
Student wow thats cool
Student How is the SEM controlled Annie?
Bugscope Team So long as everything is working properly, you control the scope with a click of the mouse.
Student How long have u been into bugs scot????????
Student It's like a sea of hexagons
Student thts cool
Student CateW, did bugscope start out with the sem and go to use other microscopes
Student CateW wat is the weirdest bug youve seen
Bugscope Team i have to say, when I received a mole cricket from a school, that was pretty weird and gross looking
Student what else do you look at CateW

Student oh
Student what are the black spots
Student thanks scot
Student Scot do you have to travel to find you samples?
Bugscope Team people send them to us, or we catch them at home -- for bug samples, anyway
Student i like hanging with my friends but otherwise i pay attention
Student Do you look at anything besides bugs?
Student Annie, how many electrons does it have
Student Annie do you like working with bugs?
Student i tink.....
Student ew!!! Mrs.H-T are those other bugs or the moths skin on its eye?
Student annie what would you study more bone or tissue
Bugscope Team I study neither--insects don't have bones!!! I mostly study the behavior of longhorned beetles
Student The eye looks like the earth in hay for some reason, very detailed
Student what is that because i don't know it lookes like a FLY EYE!
Student SCOTT UR AWSOME
Student Annie how many years of collage did you take to get this job?????
Teacher I took care of the person you wanted, Mrs. Prego.
Student Mrs. H-T can you look at a moths mouth ?
Student dont change the pic i didnt see it!!!
Bugscope Team another weird things I've had to deal with was a very large beetle larva that was very alive and very mad. It was very gross in my opinion
Bugscope Team hahahaha
Student scot what do you love to study??
Bugscope Team I love to read, and because we work with insects/arthropods so much I like to read about them. also -- ways of working with the TEM, which can now (some of them) resolve atoms
Teacher Thank you.
Student Cate what is you hardest bug you have studied
Student gasp, no double exclaimtion points Mrs. Prego!
Student Annie Do you know what bugs PALMS will be looking at?
Bugscope Team I am not sure...Cate and Scott pick the specimens
Student what is that mrs.h-t
Student Sorry victor pressed enter

Student all of those pictures are awesome!!
Teacher !!
Student CateW then how did u find them if their nockturnal
Bugscope Team it was sent to us by a school. There are nocturnal spiders we see easily during the day time. Sometimes they don't hide out in very good places
Student Scot on a scale 1 to 10 how much do you love your job
Student i love this this is so fun
Student HOW MANY BUGS DO YOU RESERCH IN A WEEK!
1:16pm
Teacher We are still looking at a moth.
Student where do you get the bugs?
Student Mrs. prego just got u ashley

Student Mrs. HT how many chats do we have?
Student KEWL
Student what is that
Student HOW MUCH DOES THE MICROSCOPE WEIGH?
Student MCKAYLA; How do you controle the sem???????
Student Wow that's awsome!!!
Teacher We are moving to the Aphid probiscus as per request from Mr. B.
Student ew x100000
Student wow Mrs Ht whats that
Student CATEW wat is the weirdest bug to you
Bugscope Team the weirdest looking ones are probably some sort of true bug, like an assassin bug or a wheel bug. People are always asking me what's THIS bug, and it;s usually a true bug
Student i like that pic

Student this site is SO much fun!!
Student a lot
Student REALLY MRS.H-T IF IT'S A MOTH THAN WHAT BODY PART IS IT
Student are SEMs portalble
Student Annie do you think it would be easier to use a different type of microscope? why or why not
Bugscope Team I think the SEM is a very easy microscope to use. The only microscope that is easier is a basic light microscope
Student what is theat
Bugscope Team this is the tip of the piercing mouthparts of the aphid
Student can any one read this i got kicked off
Bugscope Team Kyle you exist, apparently. :)
Student oooh thank you !
Student that
Student this is so cool!!!!!
Student awesome
Student What is ur favorite thing to look at sj?
Bugscope Team I think it is either bugs or carbon nanotubes
Student what does um stand for
Bugscope Team it stands for micrometer. the u is supposed to be a mu
Bugscope Team It stands for micrometer--it is the scale bar on the image (good question!)
Student Is that hair??????
Student AWESOME! THIS PIC IS INCREDIBLE!!
Student Wat would happen if u put an alive specimen on the tray?
Teacher With the moth, we were looking at its eye and its fuzzy head and antenna

Student scot, how many electrons does it have
Bugscope Team endless quantities of electrons
Student thanks scot
Student LOL
Student Scot what will PALMS be looking at?
Bugscope Team there is a light microscopy technique called PAL-M that gets very good resolution of small fluorescent molecules.
Student mrs ht can you zoom in on the wing please
Student scot wat is your â™¥ specimen
Student Scot are SEMs portable
Student Scott, is the SEM very portable?
Student mrs HT what is that
Student cate how many years have u been doing bug scope
Bugscope Team I've been doing it since 2005, so about 4 years
Student scot what is the groosest thing u've seen
Student OH OK THANKS MRS. H-T
Student wat would happen if u put an alive specimen on the tray scot?
Student scot what is your favorite thing to look at
Student is that the moth's mouth Mrs.H-T ?
Student MRS.HT IS IT FUN WORKING THE MICROSCOPE????
Student why do
Student where do get the bugs?
Student annie y do u like bugs
Bugscope Team Yes for the most part. I don't like cockroaches or horseflies or yellowjackets.
Student Scot what do you do with the electron microscope
Student This site is AWSOME
Student how long have you had the microscope
Student scot what is your favorite microscope to work with??
Student mrs.H-T this bug is kinda scary.....
Student have any of you found something very important????????
Student how big can the specimen be?
Student thank your
Student I agree that is creepy ! Yet cool.
Student CATEW where does the power come from
Student Mr hinkle bug haha
Teacher Is this the Mr. Hinkle bug?
Student wat is your favorite specimen scot
Student Are People working on better microscope then the sem??m,m,
Student scot,how long did u have to go to school for this job
Bugscope Team I went to school for maybe 5 years, got an English and then a Biology degree.
Student how do you clean it??
Student What is that kind of bug????/???

Student thanks Scot. YOU ROCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Student good one mrs. ht
Student mr hinkle bug...ha
Student Have you ever gotten sick from what you saw in the SEM?
Bugscope Team you can get close to motion sickness sometimes
Student lol nice one mrs prego
Student When did you start working with micorscope Annie
Bugscope Team 2005
Student CateW,y is a scanning electron microscope for your line of work
Bugscope Team I'm not sure WHY it's for my line of work, but it's what I do and something I enjoy using
Student sorry mrs. ht
Teacher We don't have a Mr. Hinkle bug this year. Besides, he shaved his beard.

Student scot r u having fun
Student he did
Student haha good one mrs ht
Student Ha ha mrs. Prego!

Student HOW MANY BUGS DO YOU RESERCH IN A WEEK

Student why is it the mr hinkle bug
Student Scot on a scale from 1 to 10 how much do you love your job
Student why don't we have a hinkle bug this year
Student good one mrs H-T
Bugscope Team I forgot about him!
1:21pm
Student Mr. Hinkle bug!!!
Student sam

Student [pgj

Student Cate Have u ever had to go across th nation?
Bugscope Team No, I almost did once, but I was having a hard time getting there flying so it was cancelled
Student Scot how long have you been doing this job?
Bugscope Team here, for about 11 years. electron microscopy full time for 26 years
Student CateW were does the power come from
Bugscope Team the wall socket, where else?!
Student that is a long time scot
Student WOW
Teacher We try to forget about him on a regular basis, Scot!
Student scott everybody knows mr hinkle
Student No Scot, I think you misunderstood me, PALMS is our school, do you know know what bugs we will be look at?
Bugscope Team thank you for explaining -- I wasn't sure. Cate will make the sample, and you might be able to request certain critters, like we have a flea I would like to see.
Student why is the electron microscope so big
Student lol
Student Sott
Student Scott what did you go to collage for????
Student Mrs. H-T: aw do you really mean that?
Student HA HA HA HA mrs. ht good one
Student why
Teacher The ladybug face kind of reminds me of Mr. Hinkle today. Frowning with his arms crossed.

Student a generator

Student :) thnx for answering that
Student Scot wat are those big hair things
Student Has there been any like sparks or anythng wen u tried to use a SEM scot
Student How long does it take to see the specimen Scot?
Bugscope Team maybe 30 minutes from dry sample to coated to good images

Student KYLE?WHAT?
Student Scott and Annie, thank you for answering all of our questionsâ˜º
Bugscope Team You are very very welcome
Student scot have you ever looked at a bug alive under the microscope
Bugscope Team scott has looked at something as close to alive as you can get. He looked at some mites while using the microscope in environmental mode, so the microscope was in a low vacuum state.
Student HAHAHA Mrs. Pergo
Student why are the pictures in black and white? Scot
Bugscope Team The images are signal from electrons rather than from light. so we don't see color.
Student Hahahaha Mrs.H-T
Student Is that going to be the new Hinkle bug?

Student Thx Scot
Student im telling mr hinkle
Student Scot how many bugs did you reseach?
Student hinkle bug
Student was this your first job scot
Bugscope Team this is my third EM job
Student ?
Student Jack you tattle tale you!
Student scot: you mean we can request bugs?? awesome seeing a flea would be intresting haha
Bugscope Team yes if you want, and if we have it

Student I'm telling to
Student no your not
Student have fun jack
Student HES GOING TO not care
Student Has there been any spark or mini explosions inside the SEM scot
Bugscope Team used to be before we changed the way one of the detectors worked -- there used to be sparks
Student lol ya
Student just joking
Student Mrs Ht Whats that?
Student is it costly to mantain
Student what year did you start this scot
Student HOW DO YOU HIGHLIGHT
Student cool
Student What is EM
Student scot! tht is rlly cool! do hope for more SEM jobs?
Student sj do you like bugs
Student Scot on a scale from 1 to 10 how much do you love your job
Teacher This is what the aphid looks like magnified 157X
Student Mrs. H-T r we back
Student what year was the electron microscope made in
Student scot: awesome!!!!!
Student Hinkle bug! ( glad mr. hinkle isn't here)...

Student Mrs. H-T what is that
Student Scott, What is your favorite specimen
Bugscope Team I think mosquitos, no.. ticks!, no, maybe earwigs, but with mites!
Student whoa
Student how do you get all the power?
Student Whats the least intersting thing uv ever seen Cate?
Bugscope Team a roach. They have been around for so many years, that there is just nothing interesting to look at. They are very streamlined
Student ha ha sam
Student Has anyone got hurt from the sparks scot
Teacher We are going to move to the Assassin Bug Head at 65X
Student who made bug scope
Student where do you get the bugs?
Student annie are you there if so what is your favorite sample\
Student how big is the building your working in
Bugscope Team it's like an ocean liner, really large
1:26pm
Student Annie what is your LEAST favorite bug?
Bugscope Team Horseflies...hate em.
Student Annie do you travel every day to find each one of you samples???
Bugscope Team I do not travel every day. In the summer time I travel to field sites almost every day, but during the fall and winter I have to stay home most of the time because the insects are not active
Teacher trish/ivy, please be more polite.
Student Are SEMs portable???
Bugscope Team there are portable SEMs, but not nearly as nice as this one
Teacher Me too, Sam.
Student scot has anyone got hurt from the sparks scot
Student how old is bugscope and why was it made Scot?
Bugscope Team it is more than 10 now, and we did it to show we could develop a sustainable outreach program
Student yey were back heehee
Student Thank you soooooooo much
Student annie, thanks she really wanted to know what the answer was!!!!
Bugscope Team I hope that was right...I have never picked it up!
Student o thats awsome
Student how do you get the specimin in the microscope
Bugscope Team we vent the chamber first so it's not a vacuum in there anymore, and then we open up a little door and stick in the sample and then pump the chamber again
Student mrs.ht what is that?
Student HI

Student Yeah me to Mrs.P
Student why do u have 2 coat the speciman special metal
Student What is that???????
Student THANKS ANNIE
Student What college do you go to
Student wat is the bigest bug u ever looked at
Student y is it called tht?
Student r u guys all sitting next to each other chat with us
Bugscope Team nope, Scott and I are a few offices away from each other, and Annie is way out in Californai
Student why is it called that???
Student Scot after this will you go home?
Bugscope Team no I have some guys to work with who are coating samples with gold-palladium using an evaporator
Student why is it called an electron microscope
Student annie is it costly yo mantain'
Student evil bug....
Student what is the max magnification
Student g
Student haahaasam

Student SORRY MRS HT
Teacher Do you know why this bug is called the assassin bug?
Bugscope Team It preys on other insects. It uses its long proboscis, which is its mouthpart, and jabs it into the prey to suck out the juices
Student lol Mrs. Prego! it does remind me of mr. hinkle! just don't tell him I agree or there goes my social studies grade!

Student Thx Scot

Student Scot, sense bug scope started have you had this chat???
Student why is it called an assassin bug
Bugscope Team Because they sneak up on their prey very slowly, then catch them and suck out all their body juices!!!!
Student OOPSPS SORRY JACK
Student what is a TEM
Bugscope Team It is a Transmission electron microscope. Similar to SEM in that it uses electrons to image, but we are looking at a sample that is very thin so that electrons can go through the sample. We get contrast from things being more dense than others
Student yes y is it call that?
Student Mrs. H.T. can you put on house fly bug on?? in a while i don't think you did it yet?
Student what is the esem???
Bugscope Team ESEM means environmental scanning electron microscope. We use this microscope, but a different way, and we don't have to coat the samples with gold-palladium.
Student vfg
Student what is the max magnification of the sem
Student do u no annie
Student LOL jamie
Student has anyone got hurt from the sparks scot
Bugscope Team no they were contained, but people were afraid their samples might be harmed
Student sorry i got loged off but now i'm back
Student annie how long have youve been looking at bugs
Bugscope Team I have been looking at bugs my whole life, but I took my first entomology class in--2001, maybe?
Student y do u like your jobs
Student This is so cool.
Student What is that?...
Student Why is it called a assassin bug???????????????
Student what is your favorite bug that you have looked at so far
Student Thanks Mrs.ht
Student oh wat would happen to the specimens i thnk they would be fried scot
Bugscope Team it looked like it but not really
Student THIS IS AWESOME

Student scot why do you have to coat the specimanwith special metal
Bugscope Team The metals have lots of electrons that can be knocked off and detected by the electron detector. If we left the specimens uncoated there wouldn't be very many extra electrons on the surface and we wouldn't get a good image.
Student one of you can aswer this if you want... Why do you like studing bugs?
Student Cate wat is the uglies bug youve seen
Bugscope Team it would probably be a beetle larva that we received one time. Larvae creep me out
Student I read on the Internet there are 3 different types of SEMs is this true
Student wats a nanometer
Student Annie, ya i dont think i would want to haha seems pretty heavy... lol
Bugscope Team Scott and Cate would be pretty mad at me if I picked up the scope
Student scot what os your favorite microscope to work with

Student what is the creepiest thing u ever seen, annie
Student Scot why can't we see detail on bug with just are eyes
Bugscope Team sometimes there is not much detail to see in certain insect eyes
Student what is the coolest thing you saw in the sem,?????????????????
Student Annie about how many bugs do you reserch in a day
Student what time does your day end???
Student wat is this pcture of
Student Heyy Scot How long is the average size cetipede
Bugscope Team the average might be 6 inches, given the longer ones in the Tropics
Student Thats disturbing once again
Student scot what is the best part of you
Student Annie, where did you go to colage to learn about what you study now?
Student yea it is
Student Cate,Scot,Annie,sj what are your least favorite bugs?
Student How long have you been into bugs scot???????????????????????????????
1:31pm

Student scot was is the best part of your job luke hit enter before
Student Scott?what's a nanometer
Bugscope Team A nanometer is a unit of length in the metric system, equal to one billionth of a meter.
Student i'm running out of Q's
Bugscope Team hey no problem, but I bet you could think of some more
Student sorry, ment to say COLLAGE
Student hi every body
Student Annie wut do u like about the microscope
Student mrs.ht the pic looks like a spikey ear-ring
Bugscope Team that's the assassin bug head from the side
Student or no, it is colloge
Student where do get the bugs?
Bugscope Team Sometimes classes send them to us, sometimes we collect them, and some are donated from entomology students
Student I read on the Internet there are 3 different types of SEMs is this true, Scot
Student anwser \
Student do u have to take a special course on learning how to work the sem
Bugscope Team Cate could teach you -- that is one of the things she does here.
Student me=
Student Scot how long have u been working with the electron microscope
Bugscope Team For 26 years full time.
Student help me its me sam
Teacher I tried to give Mrs. Prego assasin bug earrings for her wedding, but she didn't like them!
Student us that a lot scot
Student Annie what is your least favorite bug??
Bugscope Team Horseflies
Student lol scot. i bet we could

Student Annie, where did you go to colage to learn about what you study now?
Bugscope Team I went to a small school called Bellarmine University for undergrad, and the University of Illinois for graduate school
Student lol
Student i like the name of this bug
Student Annie, have you ever gone to a different contry to look at bugs?
Bugscope Team Yes, I have been to Costa Rica and Mexico. I am hoping to go to Panama in the spring
Student is that a lot

Bugscope Team the ball in the middle is the eye
Student Heyy Scot, How big can a tarantula web be?
Bugscope Team is that a trick question?
Student scot can u be my friend
Bugscope Team Sure!
Student annie when you look at bugs do you think they are interresting or not!?
Bugscope Team Usually...it depends on the insect
Student Mrs.H-T LOL
Student Annie, haha now i have something to google when im done! haha "how much does a SEM weigh"
Bugscope Team This is learning in action ;)
Teacher Kids, we have about 7 minutes lefts to ask questions.
Student what do you like to study more bone or tissue?
Teacher They sucked out the blood in my ears and then they were a different color!
Student Cate, thanks
Student Lol Mrs.H-t
Student Cate wat is ur favorite specimen
Teacher We are going to get a close up of this eye.
Student lol
Student Annie what is your least favorite bug
Student Hi Scot about how many bugs do you look at a day?
Bugscope Team sometimes 15 or 20, but usually like today, just for Bugscope. We work with lots of people who look at many other small things.

Student is the microscope hard to work
Student Scot, haha
Student Scot what is that big dot on the head
Student Cate wat is the smallest or weirdest spider
Student ok
Student what is your favorite bug

Student ok
Student scott wat is your favorite bug
Student what is a nanometer Scot
Bugscope Team It is a billionth of a meter, or a millionth of a millimeter, or a thousandth of a micrometer, also called a micron
Student That is so weird
Student where do get the bugs?
Student do you wok all day
Student is that nanometer a lot
Teacher This is the assassing bug's eye up close.
Student What is the difference between the SEM and a regulur micorscope Scot
Student where do get the bugs?
Student ANNIE!!!!!!! DO YOU LIKE OTHER BUGS ??????????????
Bugscope Team Yes, I do. I like most other insects, except those that eat my garden, bite me, or buzz too close to my face.
Student heyyyy scot what is your least favorite bugggggg to loook at ??
Student scot are the bugs fun to look at

Student Scot what type of sciencetist are you
Student Brandin, its the eye
Student Scot what are those chunks on the eye
Bugscope Team probably dirt, dust. sometimes we see bacteria, and sometimes scales from moths, for example
Student Where do you get the bugs?
Student Annie what is the coolest part of the long horned bettle
Student tell her i do
Teacher FYI COLLEGE kids, not COLLAGE
Student scot can u be MY friend?
Bugscope Team You bet!
Student When u use the SEM how does the air thats not sucked out interfer with electrons?
Bugscope Team yes that is exactly right -- the air would just get in the way
Student Annie, oh yaaa lol thanks so much for answering our questions!!!
Student mrs h-t what is that bug ?
Student ooking at bugs
Student My mistake
Student whats that
Student how much does it coast to get a specimin ready do be looked at

Student thanks scot!!!!!!@
Student do u like looking at bugs
Student way is the coolest thing about the microscope
1:36pm
Student Thanks scott
Student best buddy!!!!!!
Student bye everybody thanks
Student Byeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Teacher Since we don't have a lot of time left, I am going to switch to the grasshopper spiracle and zoom out.
Student bye every body
Student What is that
Student by
Student bye
Student by
Student bye best buddy scot!
Bugscope Team Bye! Thank You!

Student Good bye guys
Student Well looks like we have to leave bye everyone thankyou so very much
Student bye!!!
Student sorry i meant wat is the coolest thing about the microscope?
Student BYE
Student goodbye

Student Good-bye g2g
Student Bye
Student Bye!!
Student bye cate
Student BYe Annie
Bugscope Team Thanks for all your great questions. I know we didn't get to them all, we tried
Student bye every1 â˜»â˜»â˜»
Student bye best friend

Bugscope Team You all ask great questions
Student Bye Cate
Student Bye Annie Bye Scot have a good dayâ˜»!!
Student bye thanks
Student bye bug guys.
Student TTYL BYE SCOT LOL
Student Bye people
Student Bye Scot Cate Annie and Sj thank you for answering all my questions you were all a big help
Student bye peobye
Student Got to go (gtg) peace.
Student scot ur my bff
Bugscope Team yay!
Student bye everybody
Student no THANK U!!! BYE!!!!!

Student gtg bye annie
Student Thanx every body
Student bye everybody we got to goo thankyou!
Bugscope Team bye bye all, thank for the questions!

Student peace out home dog GTG (got to go) Bye

Bugscope Team Thank you! And see you next year!

Teacher Scot, Annie, and Cate, thank you so much for taking the time to answer our questions! Did you get the posters we sent of what the kids made last year?

Bugscope Team yes we did! and thank you!
1:41pm
Bugscope Team we are poor correspondents outside of email and chat, I guess, but we appreciate what you sent
Bugscope Team The students asked some excellent questions
Bugscope Team This was a fast, furious, fun session.
Teacher They had so much fun making them! It took me until, what, August to sent them, so I'm not so great with the correspondence either. Don't worry.
Bugscope Team this is why we do this, for days like today when we have such good kids
Teacher Annie, you are still a goddess here in PA, since you are the star of the video I show them!
Teacher Thanks! I'll let the kids know you had a good time!
Bugscope Team Hahaha, that is so funny. I sometimes forget that I even made that video...makes me feel glamorous
Bugscope Team poor Mr Hinkle. ha
Teacher The funny thing is he isn't here today, so it is soo much easier for us to pick on him!
Teacher Okay, I must go dismiss the kids. See you next year! Thanks again!
Bugscope Team Thank you!
Bugscope Team we have some geologists here studying acid mine waste that has biofilms in it. they're on next.
Bugscope Team Thank You!

School Name	Palisades Middle School
School Homepage	www.palisadessd.org
Location
Community	Rural
Type	Public

Subjects Taught	science, language arts
Grades Taught	6th Grade
Number of Students	65

Project Title	Electron microscopes and scale
Insects To Study	whatever we find
Project Description	As part of our unit on cells, students do extensive work with light microscopes, and we discuss scale/measurement. We would use the electron microscope to compare how magnification changes the view of an object. We will then tie this in with art to have students create scaled pictures from the images we collect during our session.

Session 2009-088 with Palisades Middle School

Application

The School

The Class

The Project

Miscellaneous

Live Session Transcript

Connected on 2009-10-28 12:00:00 from , PA, US