Introduction
to Organelles
Jenn
Dearolf
2001 - 2002 Fellow
I
have developed three lectures designed to introduce students
to transmission and scanning electron microscopy and cellular
organelles. The lectures on the transmission electron microscope
(TEM) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) are designed
to enhance units on microscopy. They include information
about why electron microscopes can produce greater magnifications
than light microscopes, how to prepare tissue for viewing
on the TEM and SEM, and pictures of various specimens viewed
with the microscopes. In addition, the lectures include pictures
of the TEM and SEM at Cornell University.
The organelle lecture includes information about some of the most recent findings concerning the mitochondrion and the golgi apparatus. A reading from the March 5, 1999 issue of Science was given as a handout with this lecture - "Can mitochondrial clocks keep time?" by Evelyn Strauss, pages 1435-1438.
To compliment
the organelle lecture, I designed a laboratory exercise that has students
build organelles using everyday items. To keep the students on task,
the exercise also includes questions they should be able to answer.
In addition, as a wrap up, the students are asked to come together
and build a cell with their organelles, and once the cell is constructed,
they discuss how different organelles communicate with each other.
Click here to download
this exercise as a PDF file, or click
here to view it as an HTML (web-based) file.
