LAB REPORT 1 1

Lab report 1 - Final Draft

Final Draft - Lab Report 1

October 20, 2022

Research Question:

What are the impacts of various magnifications (x40, x100, x400) on an amount of cheek

and onion cells, when using a light microscope?

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Personal Engagement:

This lab was a truly interesting and new experience for me as a person as it was the first

time I had ever used a light microscope. The process of being in the lab and performing the

necessary procedures to see the cells was absolutely exciting for me. Performing the lab was an

enjoyable experience, especially since I was able to cells, let alone my own cells magnified with

different magnifications. I took various micrographs once I was able to see the cells was beyond

engrossing. I was consisting discussing the results of putting the cheek and onion cells

underneath the light microscope with my partner. We were conferring the visible differences

between the two different types of cells. One element of this lab that stood out to me was that I

was able to put my own cheek cell under the microscope and see it up close. All-inclusive this

lab was very compelling and the idea of seeing cells, the smallest unit of life magnified was truly

magnificent (Fisher, 2021). This lab made me feel very ambitious about learning more about

cells and the details within them. Practicing in this lab widened my understanding of cells and

helped me physically see the differences between the two types of cells we observed. I hope I get

more opportunities to take part in labs since this lab enlarged my knowledge on this topic and the

lessons I have learned.

Background:

Cells are something that all living things as well as the tissues within the body are made

up of, they are the smallest unit capable of living on their own (Definition of Cell - NCI

Dictionary of Cancer Terms - NCI, n.d.). The cell theory expresses that the cell is the smallest

unit of life, that the only source of new cells is from pre-existing cells, along with that every

living thing is made up of cells (bioknowledgy, n.d.). There are two different types of cells, plant

cells, and animal cells. Plant cells are found within plants whilst animal cells are found in
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animals, they are found within humans just like ourselves. The onion is the plant cell and the

cells of the cheek are the animal cells. The differences between these two types of cells in mainly

within the organelles inside of them. As an example of the different organelles within them,

plants cells have organelles that animal cells don't have, a number of them consist of

chloroplasts, a cell wall, as well a large central vacuole (4.10: Eukaryotic Cells - Comparing

Plant and Animal Cells, 2022). Whereas animal cells also have organelles that plant cells do not

have, which include a centrosome along with lysosomes (4.10: Eukaryotic Cells - Comparing

Plant and Animal Cells, 2022). Since cells are the smallest unit of life the size of them is too

small for the naked eye to observe (Fisher, 2021) (3.1 How Cells Are Studied – Concepts of

Biology – 1st Canadian Edition, n.d.). Magnification is then required in order to see the cells.

Microscopes offer different levels of magnification, therefor when using one to observe cells you

can view them at different levels of magnification. When you have a micrograph, you are also

able to calculate the magnification of the image and see how many times it has been magnified.

You can do so by using the formula that is used to calculate magnification. The formula for the

calculation of magnification is that magnification is equal to image size (measured with a ruler)

divided by the actual size (in regards to the scale bar) (Magnification, n.d.). Microscopes are

used to be able to see the cells. There are different types of microscopes, some of those types

include electron microscopes as well as compound microscopes (Difference Between Compound

and Electron Microscope - Biomadam, n.d.). Within the compound microscope, one lens is

positioned near the substance to be seen (Difference Between Light Microscope and Electron

Microscope, n.d.). When using an electron microscope there is a device that enlarges images by

using electron beams to capture them (Difference Between Light Microscope and Electron

Microscope, n.d.). One of the most common microscopes, the light microscope, which is a
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compound microscope was used within this lab to view the cells (Types of Microscopes, n.d.).

The way light microscopes work is that images from the specimens that are mounted onto the

microscope are magnified by the light microscope using a blend of lenses along with visible light

(Magnification, n.d.). The surface area to volume ratio is an important aspect when it comes to

cells. The surface area to volume ratio essentially is the ratio of an object's surface area to its

volume (Surface Area to Volume Ratio: Definition, Formula, Examples, n.d.). A cell's surface

area grows as the square of its radius while the radius rises, yet its volume grows as that of the

cube of the radius it has (4.4: Studying Cells - Cell Size, 2022). Thus, a cell's surface area to

volume ratio drops as it grows in size (4.4: Studying Cells - Cell Size, 2022). Within this lab, we

will observe cheek and onion cells which are both eukaryotic cells, they both also have a nucleus

that is distinct (Onion Cells and Cheek Cells Are the Examples of Prokaryotic Cell., n.d.). To

start off an onion cell happens to be a typical plant cell that has a big vacuole as well as a hard

cell wall on the outside of it, looking like bricks in some way (Onion Cells and Cheek Cells Are

the Examples of Prokaryotic Cell., n.d.). Whereas when it comes to the human cheek cell, it is an

animal cell with a spherical form but no cell wall unlike the onion cell (Onion Cells and Cheek

Cells Are the Examples of Prokaryotic Cell., n.d.).

Hypothesis:

Fewer number of cells are seen with the more powerful the magnification is, and vice versa. It

has even been demonstrated that the field of view narrows as magnification increases

(Microscope Field of View at Different Magnifications, n.d.).

Requirements/Materials:

Compound microscope

Slides and cover slips

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Lens cleaning tissues

Teat pipette

Paper towels

An onion

Diluted methylene blue stain

Toothpick

Forceps

Procedure:

Procedure A: Plant Tissue

1. Start with cleaning the coverslips with the cleaning tissue and carefully glass slide it in with

care; being gentle as it’s known to be fragile.

2. Carry out the piece of sliced onion and break it in half with both your index finger and thumb

until you get a clear view of the clear membrane.

3. With care, remove one half of the onion slice with the forceps until the clear membrane peels

off then proceed on peeling the entire membrane off the other half of the slice.

4. Place the membrane on a slide and add two drops of Methylene Blue then cover the

membrane with a gentle touch using the cover slip.

5. Adjust the focus of the microscope light source. Multiple cells are going to appear into view at

40x magnification.

6. Make sure to repeat step five at the magnification of 100x and 400x.
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7. Start calculating the field of view during each magnification.

8. Take note whilst drawing and labeling your diagrams clearly. Make sure you’re able to

identify the cells walls, cell membrane, chloroplast and nuclei.

Procedure B: Animal Tissue

1. Start with cleaning the coverslips with the cleaning tissue and carefully glass slide it in with

care; being gentle as it’s known to be fragile.

2. Pick out a clean toothpick and start scraping against the inside of your cheek, slowly and

gently.

A material is going to be obtained. Take the toothpick and rub it in the center of the slide until

the material is flatly smeared.

3. Add two drops of Methylene Blue on the flatly smeared material. Place the coverslip over the

center of the glass.

4. Adjust the focus of the microscope light source.

5. For each magnification of 40x, 100x, and 400x, note down the accurate information and

sketch down your diagrams.

6. Start calculating the field of view during each magnification.

7. Label your diagrams with the accurate information gathered, making sure to include other

detailed organelles if they become visible to the eye.

Safety/ethical /environmental considerations:

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1. Coverslips can easily be broken, be careful if there becomes a danger of broken glass. Be sure

to keep an emergency aid kit nearby.

2. Forceps may cause cuts which will lead to open skin. Report to your teacher if this occurs.

3. The Methylene blue can stain your skin and hair. Ensure that Methylene blue doesn’t come

into direct contact with your eyes. This also applies to the fact that it shouldn't be consumed as

it’ll cause both harm and damage.

4. Long hair should be tied back and lab coats should be worn at all costs.

Data Processing:

Raw Data:

Table 1: Magnification of onion and cheek cells under high, medium, and low power

Magnification Number of Cheeks cells Number of Onion cells

Counted Counted

40x 12 210

100x 3 34

400x 1 5

Variables:

Table 2: Variables of the experiment; Independent Variables, Dependant Variables, Constants, as

Well as the Controlled Variables

Independent Dependant Constants Controlled Variables

Variable Variables

Magnifications of the The number of cells Microscope used, The brightness of the
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light microscope seen underneath the temperature, light on the

(40x, 100x, 400x). light microscope. microscope, cover microscope.
slips, slides.

Processed Data:

Table 3: Differences Between the Number of Cells in Each Magnification

Cell Type Number of Cells Number of Cells Number of Cells

Between Low and Between Medium Between Low and
Medium and High High Magnification
Magnification Magnification

Cheek Cell 9 2 11

Plant Cell (Onion 176 29 205

Cell)

Figure 1: Differences Between the Number of Cells in Each Magnification

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Figure 2: Number of Cheek Cells Counted Under Low-Medium-High Magnification

Table

Figure 3: Number of Onion Cells Counted Under Low-Medium-High Magnification

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Table 4: Number of Onion and Cheek Cells Total Counted: under low-medium-high
magnification

Analysis of Collected Data:

Through analyzing the data collected, you can see that magnification plays a large role in

the number of cells visible through the light microscope used. The number of onion cells through

the different magnifications differed in a large amount and the number of cells counted lessened

as the magnification became greater. As seen from the various tables when it came to the cheek

cells when the magnification was x40 the number of cells visible was 12. Along with that, when

the magnification was x100 the number of cells visible was 3, and when the magnification was
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x400 only one cell was visible. When it came to the onion cells, the same type of thing occurred

and the number of cells visible decreased the greater the magnification was. When the onion

cells were under the microscope, once the magnification was x40 the number of cells I was able

to count was 210, although when the magnification was x100 the number of cells visible went

down to 34, and when the magnification was x400 I was only able to count 5 cells.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, the hypothesis that fewer cells are seen the more powerful the

magnification is when using a light microscope, and vice versa, I had conducted was correct. The

impact of various magnifications (x40, x100, x400.) on an amount of cheek and onion cells,

when using a light microscope was that the number of cells decreased the greater the

magnification was. The results matched up with the hypothesis and in fact the greater the

magnification on a microscope the fewer amount of cells were visible. As the various

magnifications got greater, the number of cells visible decreased. I saw this phenomenon in both

the cheek and onion cells. When the magnification was at its lowest (40x) I was able to see 12

cheek cells and 210 onion cells. As the magnification became greater at 100x there were 3 cheek

cells and 34 onion cells, and when the magnification was at its highest (400x) only 1 cheek cell

and 5 onion cells were visible. You can see how much the cheek and onion cells decreased as the

magnifications got greater as a whole through tables 10 and 11. My results within this lab were

similar to other scientific sources and studies in comparison to an article from microscopeworld.

My results and the information within an article from that source aligned ideologically. Within

that source they stated “The higher your magnification, the smaller the microscope field of view

will be” (Microscope Field of View Explained, n.d.). That was exactly the case within my

experiment within the lab and was the outcome I came about.
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Evaluation( strengths/weaknesses/ suggestions for improvement):

Although this was a successful lab, I still came across some difficulties and weaknesses

as any other person might come across. The first difficulty was when it came to peeling the skin

of the onion so we could put it on top of the slides. It was a challenging task because the piece of

the onion was very small and I struggled to be precise enough when using the tweezers to take

off the skin. I overcame this struggle by taking a deep breath and focusing until I eventually

successfully took off the skin of the onion. A weakness that I had realized I had once the lab was

over, was that I did not label my micrographs according to their magnification, I solved this

problem by comparing my micrographs to other students who had labeled the magnifications on

their micrographs. Another weakness I had and came across was when I was trying to scrape off

cells from the inside of my cheek with a toothpick. Every time I attempted and put the scrappings

of my cheeks onto the slide and look at it under the microscope, there wasn't a single cell. Until I

kept on attempting and finally saw my cheek cells properly under the microscope, even though

the number of cells was smaller than I anticipated. I did have certain strengths whilst completing

this lab, which is that even though I was not precise when peeling off the skin of the onion, I was

able to be very careful when applying the diluted methylene blue stain on the samples and

carefully applying the cover slips on top. I believe that I was very careful in not applying too

much of the stain and that I was also careful in making sure I applied the cover slip correctly

avoiding any air bubbles. Overall, I believe that even though my lab skills in his lab were not

perfect I am still ambitious in the next lab for an opportunity to better my skills.

Table 4: Evaluation (strengths/weaknesses suggestions for improvement)

Strengths Weaknesses Suggestions for

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Improvement

Capable of being extremely Difficulties peeling the skin To focus on being more
cautious when applying the of the onion in order to see precise when using tweezers.
diluted methylene blue stain the cells.
to the samples and attaching
the cover slips on top.

Cautious to avoid any air Difficulties scraping off cells To gather raw data within the
bubbles when applying the from the inside of my cheek lab in a more organized way,
cover slip. with a toothpick. to label them to identify them
more efficiently.

References

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roscope
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