If you can get a hemocytometer, and a stopwatch, you can figure out the speed
of the paramecium.
The smallest sqaures in the counting chamber measure 50 micrometers (um) or
0.05 mm. By loading a paramecia culture into the slide/coverslip assembly
and using the stopwatch, you and a partner can record when an organism
crosses the 50 um line. Then you can convert that distance to mph or
meters/sec by referring to the appropriate conversion table (um to meters,
meters to feet or yards, feet or yards to miles, etc).
Then see how fast the organisms move in Protoslo, available from any teaching
supplier like Carolina Biologicals, Sargent Welch or Wards.
Regards,
Dr Toby Horn
TJHSST
Alexandria, VA 22312
