Nerdy Science Blog

Microscopes have saved human from many microorganisms that cannot be seen by naked eyes.  However traditional microscopes are bulky, and it is unconvenient to carry them around.  Microscope has been integrated with handphone, and recently researchers fit a powerful microscope only a single image-sensing chip.  This newly developed microscope does not require lenses anymore.  Developers will build an iPod-sized device with an LCD display.  The portable device is also cheap.  The chip is only $10 and it is disposable.  This reduces the possibility of contamination between samples, and allows medics in the developing world to carry it around easily so that diseases like malaria can be diagnosed.

(news)