Session 2012-121 with Tree of Life Christian School

Application

The School

The Class

The Project

Miscellaneous

Live Session Transcript

Connected on 2013-05-16 07:30:00 from Franklin, Ohio, United States

• 7:05am
• Bugscope Team sample is in 'scope
• Bugscope Team we are waiting for the vacuum to get a bit better and we'll start making presets
• Bugscope Team for today's session
• 7:12am
• Bugscope Team good morning, Mr Hooper!
• Bugscope Team where are you?
• Teacher Whenever you're ready we are excited and waiting!
• Bugscope Team good morning, Mrs K!
• Teacher Good Morning!

• Bugscope Team our official connection is in 15 minutes; is that correct?
• Teacher yes
• Bugscope Team if you're ready now, we'll work quickly to make presets and hand the 'scope over to you a bit early, if we can
• 7:17am

• Teacher that's fine with us

• 7:22am

• Student He has a hairy head
• Bugscope Team only bees are said to have branched setae -- the hairs -- like this

• 7:28am

• Bugscope Team alright we are ready
• Bugscope Team Mrs K you have the ability to drive the 'scope.
• Teacher OK tell us how.
• Bugscope Team we can confer control to other people if you wish
• Teacher We can do it.
• Bugscope Team you can click on any of the presets on the lefthand screen, and the 'scope will drive to that place
• Bugscope Team you can also click on the screen, and the 'scope will center on the place you clicked on
• Student What are we looking at?

• Bugscope Team you can also change the mag, up or down, and also focus
• Teacher stinger

• Bugscope Team Steve we were looking at a cranefly head

• Bugscope Team this is now the bee stinger, and I am sorry -- it looks like it has a film on it that is obscuring it

• 7:33am

• Bugscope Team this is a small fly
• Bugscope Team you can see one of its compound eyes, and its antennae at the top, and also one of the ocelli, to the right, very small
• Student That looks like a buckeye
• Bugscope Team yes it does!
• Bugscope Team we can see all three ocelli -- the simple eyes on top of the head
• Bugscope Team and to the left is one of the compound eyes, of course
• Teacher how many lenses in a compound eye
• Bugscope Team the very small setae -- the microsetae on the head like fur, are called the vestiture
• Bugscope Team there are probably a few thousand here. a large hornet can have 17,000 per eye, and a dragonfly is said to have as many as 32,000 per eye
• Bugscope Team the larger spines are called setae (or spines or bristles)
• Bugscope Team setae make up for the fact that insects do not have skin; rather, they have an exoskeleton
• Teacher are the setae similar to an earthworms?
• 7:39am
• Bugscope Team I'm not sure. We've looked at earthworms before but I don't remember.
• Bugscope Team Setae can be mechanosensory, chemosensory, thermosensory, and also sticky...
• Bugscope Team the scales we see on butterflies, moths, silverfish, mosquitoes, and random other insects are also setae -- modified setae
• Bugscope Team we do not see the haltere on this fly, at least not yet
• Teacher what are we looking at now?
• Bugscope Team flies have two wings (Diptera), of course
• Bugscope Team this is the head, thorax, and front limbs of a small fly

• Bugscope Team bees and wasps are related to ants, and they have four wings
• Bugscope Team in bees and wasps, the fore- and hindwings hook together to facilitate flight
• Bugscope Team the hooks are the hamuli we see in one of the other presets
• Student Can we look at a bee?
• Teacher Marissa wants to know what is the background we're seeing?
• Bugscope Team the background with the little craters in it is doublestick carbon tape
• Bugscope Team Mrs K can click on a bee preset, or I can take you there

• Bugscope Team the sample stub, including the insects, is coated with gold-palladium alloy, maybe 20 nanometers
• Bugscope Team now you see the bee's head
• Student How big does the average fly get? - Myles
• 7:44am
• Bugscope Team they usually have 'hairy' eyes
• Teacher Andrea wants to know if the curved appendages are mouthparts?
• Bugscope Team I imagine the average fly is about 8 or 9 mm long
• Bugscope Team yes the curved appendages cover the glossa, or tongue, usually
• Student How fast can a bee fly? - Justina
• Bugscope Team here the glossa is sticking out over everything else
• Bugscope Team they are said to fly 15 to 22 or so miles per hour
• Teacher Zach would like to know how long the bee lives.
• Bugscope Team this bee also has mandibles, which we can make out at the northernmost portion of the head

• Bugscope Team a queen can live for a few to several years; drones and worker bees are more in the range of 40 days or so; actually there is a difference but I cannot recall it right now

• Bugscope Team the lifespan of drones and worker bees is variable, of course
• 7:49am
• Bugscope Team this is one of the claws -- the tip of the distalmost tarsomere
• Bugscope Team the last five segments of a limb are the tarsi
• Teacher Zach asks how many claws on the entire bee?
• Bugscope Team they have six legs and six sets of claws
• Bugscope Team many insects have claws
• Bugscope Team all insects have a head, a thorax, an abdomen, six legs, and two antennae

• Bugscope Team so for example an lobster is not an insect; lobsters have two sets of antennae
• Student How do bees make their hive? - Bobby
• Bugscope Team these hooks -- the hamuli -- serve to clip the fore- and hindwings together in both bees and wasps, as well as male ants, of which there are few
• Bugscope Team Bobby they use their mouthparts, mostly, to manipulate all of the components into place.
• Teacher John would like to know how much a SEM costs?
• Bugscope Team the wax, if there is wax, comes from eight glands on the sternites, which are body segments
• 7:54am
• Bugscope Team this SEM cost about $600,000 in 1998; we have priced new ones, and they are close to the same price now
• Bugscope Team the company makes much of its money selling service contracts

• Bugscope Team we can fix relativelyt few problems on our own
• Bugscope Team this is very small spider from my house
• Bugscope Team you can see four of its (likely) eight eyes
• Student Where is his mouth?
• Bugscope Team this is a female -- we can tell because the two pedipalps are small
• Bugscope Team let's go a little closer to see where the mouth is
• Teacher which are the pedipalps
• Bugscope Team now we're looking at where the fangs point inward
• Student What do they eat?
• Bugscope Team the pedipalps were on either side of the chelicerae, which are the things that look like buck teeth, kind of
• Bugscope Team they eat insects, arthropods, other spiders (which are arthropods)

• Bugscope Team they feed by injecting venom into their prey that dissolves the internal organs
• Bugscope Team then they suck the dissolved organs up like a milkshake
• Bugscope Team assassin bugs and ambush bugs do about the same thing
• 8:00am
• Student Yikes!

• Student Does this spider spin a web?
• Bugscope Team spiders are different from insects in several ways, of course: they have eight legs, they have a fused head and thorax (a cephalothorax), their abdomen is soft...
• Bugscope Team I think all spiders can produce web, but not all spin webs; I'm not sure about this one
• Bugscope Team claws of some insects can be opened and closed using a tendon called an unguitractor
• Teacher Jacob asks can a cricket claw cut a human?
• Bugscope Team the uniguitractor is inside the 'forearm,' which in this case is the penultimate tarsomere
• Bugscope Team the claws are so tiny they cannot penetrate our skin, or not enough to notice
• Bugscope Team we can see the the claws are less than 500 microns long
• Bugscope Team 1000 microns = 1 millimeter
• Bugscope Team bacteria are usually about 2 microns (also called micrometers) long
• Teacher Eden asks can they harm other insects or animals with these claws?
• 8:06am
• Bugscope Team other insects, arthropods, and small animals are protected: insects and arthropods usually by the exoskeleton, which is a hardened shell; animals like mice by their fur and skin
• Bugscope Team insect mouthparts can be hardened and sharp, however -- as well as stingers -- and they can pierce the exoskeleton and skin
• Teacher Rachael asks what the claws are used for then?
• Bugscope Team of course this all varies, since there are so many different kinds of insects
• Bugscope Team the claws are used much like we use our hands -- to grasp, hold, help climb, help cling to surfaces
• Student Can we see where the web comes out from? -Daniel

• Bugscope Team some insects, such as many flies, have tenent setae that help them stick to vertical surfaces
• Bugscope Team I do not think the spinnerets look very good on today's spider's abdomen -- we may not be able to see much
• Bugscope Team this is the head of a cranefly, which look like mondo bigboy mosquitoes to us, but they do not bite
• Student Ok. What is the life span of a cranefly?
• Bugscope Team we see one of its compound eyes; its head is facing west
• Bugscope Team Steve I think about 6 weeks, as an adult.
• 8:11am

• Bugscope Team ooh no that would be maximum; usually about 10 to 15 days as adults, although they can live longer
• Student What is this?
• Bugscope Team so this is kind of cool
• Teacher Sean asks what does this do?
• Bugscope Team this is the absorbent portion of the abdomen of the tiny true bug
• Bugscope Team it is apparently a small round stinkbug
• Bugscope Team this is on the thorax, between the first and second set of limbs on the ventral side -- the underside
• Bugscope Team we cannot see into the opening right now, but the black horizontal area is where the stink glands open to the outside
• Bugscope Team uh, let's try the other side
• Bugscope Team now you can see more clearly where we are
• Bugscope Team but the opening is not visible
• 8:16am
• Bugscope Team the idea is that stinkbugs know the stink they produce is repellent, and that is why they know to use it to protect themselves
• Bugscope Team but they do not like the stink any more than other insects/animals
• Teacher Sean asks what exactly is the substance that it excretes.
• Bugscope Team so those absorbent areas on the thorax help them keep the stink away from their own chemosensory setae
• Bugscope Team trans-2-decenal (decenaldehyde) and trans-2-octenal
• Bugscope Team they are two aldehydes
• Bugscope Team there are other chemicals as well

• Bugscope Team they look like long chain compounds with a double-bond to an oxygen at one end
• Teacher Andrea wants to know what the scales are made of.
• Bugscope Team the scales are silver from a butterfly with silver and orange scales
• 8:22am
• Teacher Mackenzie would like to kow about how many scales are on a typical butterfly.
• Bugscope Team the scales are made of chitin, which is material like what our fingernails are made of
• Bugscope Team I am not sure! There are certainly thousands of scales, and they serve several purposes.

• Bugscope Team One thing scales do is -- because they fall off easily -- they can help save a butterfly or moth or silverfish or mosquito from getting caught in a spider web.
• Bugscope Team they are also responsible, as we know, for colors
• Teacher Can you tell us what mouthparts we are viewing?
• Bugscope Team the colors can be both from pigments and from the shape of the scale and the fine ridges, called structural colors
• Bugscope Team these are the ladybug's mouthparts
• Bugscope Team mandlbles, mandibular and maxillary palps, little setae that seem to help filter food...
• Bugscope Team the palps have things that are kind of like tastbuds at their tips
• 8:27am
• Bugscope Team see the compound eye, to the right?
• Student How long do lady bugs live? - Josh
• Bugscope Team some ladybugs live over the winter, in your home, for example, but I would say the average is several months
• Bugscope Team they are predators
• Bugscope Team they are also helpful, because they like to eat aphids, which are plant pests
• Bugscope Team these are chemosensory setae, kind of like tastebuds, at the tip of one of the palps
• Bugscope Team palps are accessory mouthparts
• Bugscope Team see the pads along the 'forearm'?
• Teacher Thank you very much. We really enjoyed and appreciate the knowledge you have shared with us.
• Bugscope Team Thank You -- Everyone!
• Student Thanks from Room 106
• Bugscope Team Thank You!
• Bugscope Team http://bugscope.beckman.illinois.edu/members/2012-121
• 8:32am
• Bugscope Team below is a link to your member page, which has a transcript and images from your session
• Bugscope Team Nettlehorst are you still online as well?
• Bugscope Team oops "Nettelhorst"...
• Bugscope Team sorry
• Bugscope Team we will shut down soon unless you would like to ask us any questions today, or drive a bit
• Bugscope Team Nettelhorst? You are welcome to chat with us.
• Guest Oops sorry- we are, but is it possible to view the transcript?
• Bugscope Team http://bugscope.beckman.illinois.edu/members/2012-121
• Bugscope Team yes it is possible
• Guest Awesome- thank you!
• Bugscope Team anyone can bring a transcript up from the web page, and below is a direct link to it
• Bugscope Team today, if you would like, we have time for you to look around as well
• 8:38am
• Guest Are you sure? That would be fantastic!
• Bugscope Team sure! we have a little time

• Bugscope Team you have control
• Guest Great! Thanks!

• Bugscope Team these are hamuli
• Bugscope Team bees and wasps have four wings

• Bugscope Team and the hamuli serve to clip the fore- and hindwings together on each side
• Bugscope Team this is a trye bug, wtih piercing sucking mouthparts
• Bugscope Team uh 'true' bug
• 8:43am
• Bugscope Team aphids are true bugs, as are bedbugs, assassin bugs, ambush bugs, and stinkbugs
• Guest Is a true bug an insect? or just a bug?
• Guest Thanks
• Guest How does it use it's sucking mouth parts?
• Bugscope Team it's an insect, and a nunber of insects are, or were once called ' true bugs.'
• Bugscope Team it pierces leaves or stems, or in the case of ambush bugs, other bugs, or in the case of bedbugs, people
• Bugscope Team the piercing mouthparts allow the bug to suck liquids out of its preferred food source
• Bugscope Team now we can see that the proboscis is perhaps 2 millimeters long
• Bugscope Team usually it has cutting 'stylets' inside it that help pierce the leaf or skin
• Bugscope Team a mosquito has something similar, but it is a fly, not a 'true bug'
• Bugscope Team we
• Guest How is this proboscis different from a butterflies?
• 8:48am
• Guest Sorry, we are having some connection issues.
• Bugscope Team the butterfly proboscis is flexible and can roll or coil up when it is not being used
• Bugscope Team I don't believe it has any piercing components; it is kind of like a straw
• Guest Can you tell us what we are looking at now?
• Bugscope Team when a butterfly or moth wants to extend its proboscis so it can suck nectar up from deep within a flower, it forces hemolymph into the proboscis that makes it unroll like one of those party favors
• Bugscope Team here is the tip of the proboscis

• Bugscope Team Nettelhorst I am sorry -- we have someone here who would like to use the microscope.
• Guest No worries, thank you for your time!
• Bugscope Team I will need to let them on. But it was nice to get to work with you for a few minutes.
• Bugscope Team Thank You!
• Guest We really enjoyed it. Thank you!