1200X Microscope Manual and gradually increase the magnification for  more detail. What do you observe about the  leaf cells? sporcap. Inside the sporcap is a spore that  will eventually be released to start new colo- nies of mold. With your microscope you can  watch this amazing transformation unfold. about thirty hours. Next, pour half of the  provided salt into one container and stir the  solution until the salt dissolves. Pour some of  this solution into the prawn hatchery. Place a  few eggs close to the lid. Position the hatch- ery somewhere with plenty of light but not  in direct sunlight. The ambient temperature  should ideally hover around 77°F. As water in  the hatchery evaporates, gradually add fresh  water from the second container. After two to  three days, the eggs will hatch prawn larvae,  called nauplii. The animal that hatches from the egg is  known as a nauplius larva. With the help  of a pipette, you can place a few of these  larvae on a glass slide and observe them.  The larvae will move around in the salt water  by using their hair-like appendages. Take  a few larvae from the container each day  and observe them under the microscope.  Remember to return them to their container  when you’re done observing them. In case  you’ve hatched the larvae in a hatchery, sim- ply take off the cover of the tank and place  the tank on the stage. Depending on the  room temperature, the larvae will be mature  in 6-10 weeks. Soon, you will have raised a  whole generation of brine shrimp, which will  constantly grow in numbers. Feed your brine shrimp often to keep them  alive. The best food is dry-powdered yeast.  Give the some every other day. Be careful  not to overfeed them, as doing so can cause  the water to stagnate and poison the shrimp.  If the water does begin to stagnate (you’ll  see it darkening), transfer the shrimp to a  freshwater solution. Developing Bread Mold Object: An old piece of bread Put the bread on a slide and lightly moisten  it with water. Place the bread into a sealed  container, and keep it warm and out of harsh  light. Within a short time, black bread mold will  form. When the mold takes on a white, shiny  appearance, remove the slide from the con- tainer and observe it with your microscope.  It will look like a complicated mass of thread,  forming the fungus body, which is called the  mycelium. Each thread is known as a hypha.  These threads, or hyphae, grow like long, slim  stacks, ending in a small, white ball, called a  Observing Leaf Cells Objects: A fresh leaf, clean and dry, without  holes or blemishes With an adult’s supervision, cut a one-inch  -wide cross section out of the center of the  leaf, from one side of the leaf to the other.  Tightly roll that section up, starting from one  uncut edge of the leaf. The central vein of  the leaf will be in the center of the roll and not  be visible. Then cut several very thin slices  off of one end of the roll. The central vein will  be in the middle of this almost transparent  slice. You’ll be observing the cells around  that central vein. Using a droplet of water,  make a wet mount (as in Experiments 8 and  9), placing the leaf segment so that the inner  part faces up. Start with the lowest power  Observing Cork Cells Object: A small cork With an adult’s supervision, cut a very thin  slice from the cork. The thinner you cut the  slice, the better you‘ll be able to observe it..  Prepare a wet mount of this cork slice as you  did with the celery and carrot in Experiment  8. When applying the cover slip over the sli- de, the water, and the cork, make sure no  air bubbles are trapped beneath it. Begin ob- serving the specimen with the lowest power,  and increase the magnification as desired.  The cells you see, called lenticels, are actu- ally the air pockets that are left after the plant  material inside has died. 2. A carrot Cut several very thin slices from the middle  of the celery (a stem) and from the middle  of the carrot (a root). Make a wet mount by  placing a drop of water on the slide. Then  put the specimen on the water-covered sli- de, and top it with a cover slip. The water will  help support the sample. It also fills in the  space between the cover slip and the slide.  Start by viewing the specimens at the lowest  magnification and then increase the magni- fication, for more detailed observation. What  differences are there between the stem and  the root? 1. A celery stalk Observing Stem and Root Sections Objects:  Experiment 10: Warning! The shrimp eggs and the shrimp  are not meant to be eaten! Experiment 7: Feed Your Brine Shrimp Observe Your Brine Shrimp Experiment 9: Experiment 8: 6 Customer Service: Call 1-866-252-3811 National Geographic’s net proceeds  support vital exploration, conservation,  research, and education programs. © 2016 National Geographic Partners LLC. All  rights reserved. NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC and  Yellow Border Design are trademarks of the  National Geographic Society, used under license.