How deep we can see inside Nature's smallest secrets? Will it be possible some day in the near future to investigate living structures at atomic level? This area of study is very interdisciplinary, since it applies the principles and the techniques of biology, physics, chemistry, mathematics, and engineering to elucidate the structures of biological macromolecules, of supramolecular structures, organelles, and cells. This book offers updated information on how much information we are able to obtain in the exploration of the inner details of biological specimens in their native structure and composition. The book deals with the implementation of laser beam and stage scanning systems incorporating confocal optics or multiphoton microscopy; the advent of new electro-optical detectors with great sensitivity, linearity, and dynamic range; the possibility of 2D fast image enhancement, reconstruction, restoration, analysis and 3D display, and the application of luminescence techniques (FLIMT, FRET combined with the use of quantum dots), which gives the possibility to investigate the chemical and molecular spatio-temporal organization of life processes; Electron Microscopy and Scanning Force Microscopy (SFM), are also presented, which has opened completely new perspectives for analyzing the surface topography of biological matter in its aqueous environment at a resolution comparable to that achieved by EM.

Research in carbon nanotubes has reached a horizon that is impacting a variety of fields, such as nanoelectronics, flat panel display, composite materials, sensors, nanodevices, and novel instrumentation. The unique structures of the nanotubes result in numerous superior physical and chemical properties, such as the strongest mechan ical strength, the highest thermal conductivity, room-temperature ballistic quantum conductance, electromechanical coupling, and super surface functionality. Several books are available that introduce the synthesis, physical and chemical properties, and applications of carbon nanotubes. Among the various analytical techniques, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) has played a key role in the discovery and characterization of carbon nanotubes. It may be claimed that carbon nanotubes might not have been discovered without using HRTEM. There is a great need for a book that addresses the theory, techniques, and applications of electron microscopy and associated techniques for nanotube research. The objective of this book is to fill this gap. The potential of HRTEM is now well accepted in wide-ranging communities such as materials science, physics, chemistry, and electrical engineering. TEM is a powerful technique that is indispensable for characterizing nanomaterials and is a tool that each major research institute must have in order to advance its research in nanotechnology."

Description: In the last decade multiphoton excitation microscopy has emerged as an important technique with ever increasing numbers of significant applications in the fields of biology, chemistry, physics, and medicine. This volume contains key papers on the following topics: developments of nonlinear optical spectroscopy and nonlinear scanning microscopy (SHG, CARS); theory and techniques of multiphoton excitation microscopy; development of laser sources; single-molecule studies; and applications to biology, cell biology, embryology and developmental biology, neuroscience, dermatology, and optical biopsy. A comprehensive bibliography follows the reprinted papers. Partial Contents: Historical BackgroundDevelopments of Nonlinear Optical Spectroscopy and Nonlinear Scanning MicroscopyTheory and TechniquesDevelopment of Laser SourcesVideo Rate Multiphoton Excitation MicroscopySingle-molecule StudiesBiological ApplicationsApplications to Cell BiologyApplications to Embryology and Development BiologyApplications to Neural ScienceApplications to Dermatology and Optical Biopsy

Advances in Imaging & Electron Physics merges two long-running serials--Advances in Electronics & Electron Physics and Advances in Optical & Electron Microscopy. The series features extended articles on the physics of electron devices (especially semiconductor devices), particle optics at high and low energies, microlithography, image science and digital image processing, electromagnetic wave propagation, electron microscopy, and the computing methods used in all these domains.

Pushing the frontiers of electrochemistry—a survey of new surface imaging techniques.

This latest installment in the Frontiers of Electrochemistry series helps readers gain insight into one of the hottest areas of modern electrochemistry. Tracing recent advances in the imaging of electrified surfaces, this volume describes cutting-edge techniques that allow us to record real-time and real-space images with atomic resolution, observe structures of surfaces and interfaces directly on a display, study the distribution of atoms and molecules during a surface reaction, and much more.

Leading international authorities discuss surface imaging techniques used in technologies involving electrocrystallization and electrodeposition of metals—employing numerous examples to demonstrate site specificity of electrode processes, and discussing applications to electronic materials such as the capacity to print nanopatterns at electrode surfaces. They cover techniques that advance our understanding of the properties of organic films and surfaces and interfaces, including scanning electron microscopy and microprobes and atomic force microscopy. Finally, they review the theory of electron tunneling at the metal/solution interface, helping readers interpret images of electrode surfaces obtained by scanning tunneling microscopy.

Designed to meet the needs of specialists and nonspecialists alike, Imaging of Surfaces and Interfaces provides plenty of background material along with eight color plates. It is an important resource for scientists involved in electrochemistry, surface science, materials science, and electrodeposition technologies.

This book fills the need for a current textbook and reference of methods in plant microtechnique. It includes traditional methods of preparing, sectioning, and staining materials, fluorescence cytochemistry and immunolocalization, molecular techniques of in situ hydridization, plastic techniques for light microscopy, and video and digital microscopy.

High-resolution electron microscopy (HREM) has become a most powerful method for investigating the internal structure of materials on an atomic scale of around 0.1 nm. The authors clearly explain both the theory and practice of HREM for materials science. In addition to a fundamental formulation of the imaging process of HREM, there is detailed explanation of image simulationindispensable for interpretation of high-resolution images. Essential information on appropriate imaging conditions for observing lattice images and structure images is presented, and methods for extracting structural information from these observations are clearly shown, including examples in advanced materials. Dislocations, interfaces, and surfaces are dealt with, and materials such as composite ceramics, high-Tc superconductors, and quasicrystals are also considered. Included are sections on the latest instruments and techniques, such as the imaging plate and quantitative HREM.

This book provides a comprehensive introduction to the field of scanning optical microscopy for scientists and engineers. The book concentrates mainly on two instruments: the Confocal Scanning Optical Microscope (CSOM), and the Optical Interference Microscope (OIM). A comprehensive discussion of the theory and design of the Near-Field Scanning Optical Microscope (NSOM) is also given.
The text discusses the practical aspects of building a confocal scanning optical microscope or optical interference microscope, and the applications of these microscopes to phase imaging, biological imaging, and semiconductor inspection and metrology.A comprehensive theoretical discussion of the depth and transverse resolution is given with emphasis placed on the practical results of the theoretical calculations and how these can be used to help understand the operation of these microscopes.
Key Features
* Provides a comprehensive introduction to the field of scanning optical microscopy for scientists and engineers
* Explains many practical applications of scanning optical and interference microscopy in such diverse fields as biology and semiconductor metrology
* Discusses in theoretical terms the origin of the improved depth and transverse resolution of scanning optical and interference microscopes with emphasis on the practical results of the theoretical calculations
* Considers the practical aspects of building a confocal scanning or interference microscope and explores some of the design tradeoffs made for microscopes used in various applications
* Discusses the theory and design of near-field optical microscopes
* Explains phase imaging in the scanning optical and interference microscopes

How is existing knowledge reconciled with new information in the mind of a young child, as compared to that of a more sophisticated thinker?
Development of Scientific Thinking Skills explores a new framework for the conceptualization of changes in the strategies of inductive reasoning from middle childhood to adulthood.
Key Features
* Cognitive development
* Thinking skills
* Scientific thinking
* Evidence evaluation
* Theory Revision

A strange and beautiful world surrounds us, hidden from sight ... An unbelievable abundance of life flourishes on every surface of our planet. In every drop of dew, on every leaf, and even inside each one of us, invisible yet ingenious life thrives. James Weiss, microbe enthusiast and videographer, has spent thousands of hours peeking into this world, and has been astounded by the beauty he finds there. With his captivating photographs and illustrations, James presents this beginner's guide to microscopic life, from the most simple, single-celled organisms to complex micro-animals. Navigate the births, feasts, triumphs, tragedies and deaths of a cast of tiny characters, including the adorable water bear, the immortal Hydra and the dancing Desmid. Learn how these lifeforms work and what lessons they can teach us about our own existence, and discover how seeing the wonder of nature from a new perspective can change your life.

The Biology of Human Starvation was first published in 1950. Minnesota Archive Editions uses digital technology to make long-unavailable books once again accessible, and are published unaltered from the original University of Minnesota Press editions. With great areas of the world battling the persistent and basic problem of hunger, this work constitutes a major contribution to needed scientific knowledge. The publication is a definitive treatise on the morphology, biochemistry, physcology, psychology, and medical aspects of calorie undernutrition, cachexia, starvation, and rehabilitation in man.  Presented critically and systematically are the fact and theory from the world literature, including the evidence from World War II and the finding of the Minnesota Starvation Experiment (1944*1946). Pertinent experiments and field and clinical observations to 1949 are covered.  The extensive original research involved was conducted at the University of Minnesota Laboratory of Physiological Hygiene, which Dr. Keys heads. The authors, all of the laboratory staff, were assisted in preparation of the work by Ernst Simonson, Samuel Wells and Angie Sturgeon Skinner.

This new volume, Microscopy Applied to Materials Sciences and Life Sciences. focuses on recent theoretical and practical advances in polymers and their blends, composites, and nanocomposites related to their microscopic characterization. It highlights recent accomplishments and trends in the field of polymer nanocomposites and filled polymers related to microstructural characterization. This book gives an insight and better understanding into the development in microscopy as a tool for characterization. The book emphasizes recent research work in the field of microscopy in life sciences and materials sciences mainly related to its synthesis, characterizations, and applications. The book explains the application of microscopic techniques in life sciences and materials sciences, and their applications and state of current research carried out. The book aims to foster a better understanding of the properties of polymer composites by describing new techniques to measure microstructure property relationships and by utilizing techniques and expertise developed in the conventional filled polymer composites. Characterization techniques, particularly microstructural characterization, have proven to be extremely difficult because of the range of length-scales associated with these materials. Topics include: *Instrumentation and Techniques: advances in scanning probe microscopy, SEM, TEM, OM. 3D imaging and tomography, electron diffraction techniques and analytical microscopy, advances in sample preparation techniques in-situ microscopy, correlative microscopy in life and material sciences, low voltage electron microscopy. *Life Sciences: Structure and imaging of biomolecules, live cell imaging, neurobiology, organelles and cellular dynamics, multi-disciplinary approaches for medical and biological sciences, microscopic application in plants, microorganism and environmental science, super resolution microscopy in biological sciences. *Materials Sciences: materials for nanotechnology, metals alloys and inter-metallic, ceramics, composites, minerals and microscopy in cultural heritage, thin films, coatings, surfaces and interfaces, carbon based materials, polymers and soft materials and self-assembled materials, semiconductors and magnetic materials. Polymers and inorganic nanoparticles. The volume will be of significant interest to scientists working on the basic issues surrounding polymers, nanocomposites, and nanoparticulate-filled polymers, as well as those working in industry on applied problems, such as processing. Because of the multidisciplinary nature of this research, the book will be valuable to chemists, materials scientists, physicists, chemical engineers, and processing specialists who are involved and interested in the future frontiers of blends.

Full-field optical coherence microscopy (FF-OCM) is an imaging technique that provides cross-sectional views of the subsurface microstructure of semitransparent objects. The technology is based on low-coherence interference microscopy, which uses an area camera for en face imaging of the full-field illuminated object. FF-OCM benefits from the lateral imaging resolution of optical microscopy along with the capacity of optical axial sectioning at micrometer-scale resolution. The technique can be employed in diverse applications, in particular for non-invasive examination of biological tissues. This handbook is the first to be entirely devoted to FF-OCM. It is organized into four parts with a total of 21 chapters written by recognized experts and major contributors to the field. After a general introduction to FF-OCM, the fundamental characteristics of the technology are analyzed and discussed theoretically. The main technological developments of FF-OCM for improving the image acquisition speed and for endoscopic imaging are presented in part II. Extensions of FF-OCM for image contrast enhancement or functional imaging are reported in part III. The last part of the book provides an overview of possible applications of FF-OCM in medicine, biology, and materials science. A comprehensive compilation of self-contained chapters written by leading experts, this handbook is a definitive guide to the theoretical analyses, technological developments, and applications of FF-OCM. Using the rich information the book is replete with, a wide range of readers, from scientists and physicists to engineers as well as clinicians and biomedical researchers, can get a handle on the latest major advances in FF-OCM.

Cell Membrane Nanodomains: From Biochemistry to Nanoscopy describes recent advances in our understanding of membrane organization, with a particular focus on the cutting-edge imaging techniques that are making these new discoveries possible. With contributions from pioneers in the field, the book explores areas where the application of these novel techniques reveals new concepts in biology. It assembles a collection of works where the integration of membrane biology and microscopy emphasizes the interdisciplinary nature of this exciting field. Beginning with a broad description of membrane organization, including seminal work on lipid partitioning in model systems and the roles of proteins in membrane organization, the book examines how lipids and membrane compartmentalization can regulate protein function and signal transduction. It then focuses on recent advances in imaging techniques and tools that foster further advances in our understanding of signaling nanoplatforms. The coverage includes several diffraction-limited imaging techniques that allow for measurements of protein distribution/clustering and membrane curvature in living cells, new fluorescent proteins, novel Laurdan analyses, and the toolbox of labeling possibilities with organic dyes. Since superresolution optical techniques have been crucial to advancing our understanding of cellular structure and protein behavior, the book concludes with a discussion of technologies that are enabling the visualization of lipids, proteins, and other molecular components at unprecedented spatiotemporal resolution. It also explains the ins and outs of the rapidly developing high- or superresolution microscopy field, including new methods and data analysis tools that exclusively pertain to these techniques. This integration of membrane biology and advanced imaging techniques emphasizes the interdisciplinary nature of this exciting field. The array of contributions from leading world experts makes this book a valuable tool for the visualization of signaling nanoplatforms by means of cutting-edge optical microscopy tools.

Catalysis is one of the most important technologies in the industrial world, controlling more than 90% of industrial chemical processes and essential for large-scale production of plastics and fuel. Exploring the most common type of catalysis used in industry, Electron Microscopy in Heterogeneous Catalysis provides a coherent account of heterogeneous catalytic processes and catalyst surface structure at the atomic scale as elucidated by electron microscopy techniques.
The book addresses a number of issues that are fundamental to the understanding of heterogeneous catalysis by oxides and supported metals. The properties of a catalyst are governed by its microstructure and chemistry on an atomic scale, and electron microscopy methods are essential to directly analyze these properties. The book provides important information about active species, metastable-transient species, mechanisms of particle catalysis sintering, promoter-poisoning effects on an atomic scale, and catalyst support interactions on a microscale.

Although the polymerase chain reaction has revolutionized genetic analysis by amplifying rare nucleic acid sequences, the in situ application is the only method that allows the localization of amplified signal within tissue structure. The applications of in situ polymerase chain reaction have greatly enhanced the field of investigation in many disciplines, including viral infections, gene modification, tumor diagnosis, gene therapy, and cellular distribution of rare mRNA copies.

PCR/RT-PCR in situ: Light and Electron Microscopy covers methods of in situ polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and reverse transcription PCR (RT-PCR), two new approaches in visualizing very low amounts of DNA and RNA in tissues and cell cultures at the light and electron microscopy levels. Written by experts in this field, the book provides theoretical consideration, as well as practical approaches to in situ PCR. The authors provide detailed protocols for each step, including the preparation of tissue samples, the rationale for the design of primers and revelation. They also emphasize the need for appropriate controls to meet the requirements of in situ PCR and RT-PCR specificity. Organized in a user-friendly two-column format, this book will provide you with tools necessary to perform and optimize these sensitive and powerful techniques in your research protocols.

Characterization of Radiation Damage by Transmission Electron Microscopy details the electron microscopy methods used to investigate complex and fine-scale microstructures, such as those produced by fast-particle irradiation of metals or ion implantation of semiconductors. The book focuses on the methods used to characterize small point-defect clusters, such as dislocation loops, because the coverage in general microscopy textbooks is limited and omits many of the problems associated with the analysis of these defects. The book also describes in situ, high-resolution, and analytical techniques. Techniques are illustrated with examples, providing a solid overview of the contribution of TEM to radiation damage mechanisms. The book is most useful to researchers in, or entering into, the field of defect analysis in materials.

This book describes for the first time how Monte Carlo modeling methods can be applied to electron microscopy and microanalysis. Computer programs for two basic types of Monte Carlo simulation are developed from physical models of the electron scattering process--a single scattering program capable of high accuracy but requiring long computation times, and a plural scattering program which is less accurate but much more rapid. Optimized for use on personal computers, the programs provide a real time graphical display of the interaction. The programs are then used as the starting point for the development of programs aimed at studying particular effects in the electron microscope, including backscattering, secondary electron production, EBIC and cathodo-luminescence imaging, and X-ray microanalysis. The computer code is given in a fully annotated format so that it may be readily modified for specific problems. Throughout, the author includes numerous examples of how such applications can be used. Students and professionals using electron microscopes will want to read this important addition to the literature.

This technology has proved indispensable as a characterization tool with applications in surface physics, chemistry, materials science, bio-science, and data storage media. It has also shown great potential in areas such as the semiconductor and optical quality control industries.

This revised edition updates the earlier such survey of the many rapidly developing subjects concerning the mapping of a variety of forces across surfaces, including basic theory, instrumentation, and applications. It also includes important new research in SFM and a thoroughly revised bibliography. Academic and industrial researchers using SFM or wishing to know more about its potential, will find this book an excellent introduction to this rapidly developing field.

This two-volume work forms a comprehensive treatise on the theory and applications of electron-diffraction techniques, and has been organized under the auspices of the Electron Diffraction Commission of the International Union of Crystallography. All those embarking on research which involves the use of electron diffraction methods, including graduate students and more experienced researchers who wish to add electron diffraction to their array of research tools will find this an invaluable reference. Volume 1 contains introductory chapters and the sections on electron diffraction which are less dependent on considerations of imaging in electron microscopes. Volume 2 deals with those aspects where there is a stronger correlation of the diffraction phenomena with the electron microscope imaging.

The publication date of the first edition is not stated, but the new edition is apparently considerably revised and expanded. It was written to serve as a multi-purpose text at the senior or graduate level and as a reference for the practicing scientist or engineer. Readers should have a math backgr

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This book aims to provide examples of applications of atomic force microscopy (AFM) using biological samples, showing different methods for AFM sample preparation, data acquisition and processing, and avoiding technical problems. Divided into two sections, chapters guide readers through image artifacts, process and quantitatively analyze AFM images, lipid bilayers, image DNA-protein complexes, AFM cell topography, single-molecule force spectroscopy, single-molecule dynamic force spectroscopy, fluorescence methodologies, molecular recognition force spectroscopy, biomechanical characterization, AFM-based biosensor setup, and detail how to implement such an in vitro system, which can monitor cardiac electrophysiology, intracellular calcium dynamics, and single cell mechanics. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Authoritative and cutting-edge, Atomic Force Microscopy: Methods and Protocols is useful for researchers at different stages, from newcomers to experienced users, interested in new AFM applications.