BiologyBiology

Laboratory Tools

Laboratory Tools

• How many lab tools can you think of?

• Meter stick (ruler)• Triple beam balance• Test Tubes• Pipettes• Beakers• Graduated Cylinder• Erlenmeyer Flask• Petri Dish• Bunsen Burner• Hot Plate• Thermometer• Microscope

Meter Stick

• What does it measure?

• Length, distance– Millimeters,

centimeters, decimeters, meters

Triple Beam Balance

• What do they measure?

• Mass– Grams, kilograms– 2 types at HHS

How to use a triple beam balance

• Make sure all riders are on zero (far left)• If needed turn the adjustment screw on the

left end until the pointer points to the mark representing balanced on the right.

Test Tubes• What are

they used for?

• Hold a variety of liquids

• Chromatography

Pipettes

• How are they used?

• Transfer small amounts of a liquid from one container to another

– Be careful not to let the bulb fill with liquid

– This causes contamination

Beakers• What are

beakers used for?

• What do beakers measure?

– Measure, mix, and store liquids

• Volume– Liters, milliliters

• normally we use a normally we use a range of 50ml to range of 50ml to 1000ml.1000ml.

Graduated Cylinders• What do they

measure?• Volume

– Milliliters, liters

How to Use Graduated How to Use Graduated CylindersCylinders

• Liquids form curved, upper Liquids form curved, upper surfaces when poured into surfaces when poured into graduated cylindersgraduated cylinders

• To correctly read the To correctly read the volume, read the bottom of volume, read the bottom of the curve called thethe curve called the meniscusmeniscus

Erlenmeyer Flask

• What are they used for?

• Measure, mix, and store liquids

Petri Dish

• What are they used for?

• Shallow glass or plastic cylindrical lidded dish that biologists use to culture cells

• Can also be used as a container to hold small objects

Hot Plate• What is it?

• How is it used?

• Electrical heat source that is used in the lab

• Heat can be controlled in a range from 1-10

• Some have the ability to magnetically stir liquids if a magnetic stir bar is used

Thermometer

• What is it used for? • Measure the temperature of various objects.

• Celsius– 00C = freezing point

– 1000C= boiling point

• Kelvin– Based on absolute

zeros, the coldest possible temperature

– -2730C

Compound Light Microscopes

• What is it used for?

• How do you use a microscope?

• View small and/or microscopic objects to observe greater detail than can be seen with the unaided eye

• You will be given instructions at a later time on microscope usage