Water movement through a plant - a beautifully illustrated introduction to how the cellular and larger features of plants help transport water. By Anne Bruce, UK.

Diatoms in dark-field, Part II - Roland Mortimer, Brazil shows some further examples of local diatoms which look particularly stunning in dark-field illumination.

Spring thaw collecting - Richard Howey visits the lakes near his Laramie (Wyoming, US) home, and describes the fascinating variety of micro-organisms that can be found at this time of year.

Illumination variants, diffuse lighting - Paul James, UK looks at the use of diffuse lighting at low to medium powers, and describes some of the benefits of this lighting.

A complete student microscope set from 1965 - Guido Santacana, Puerto Rico shares a fine example of his toy/student microscope collection, from an era when toy microscopes were well made, equipped and usable.

Foram gallery - the talents and enthusiasm of Brian Darnton, UK and Wim van Egmond, Netherlands join forces to create this stunning illustrated article on the marvels of Foraminifera.

The repair of broken coverslips on paper covered slides - Brian Darnton, UK shows how an old damaged slide can be repaired with care and by using simple materials.

Plant hairs - why do geraniums smell and nettles sting? A fascinating look at hair structures and their role for some common plants. By Jean-Marie Cavanihac, France.

Using fiber optic illumination - Rudolf Baumueller, US describes techniques for using this versatile form of illumination, with illustrated examples from microscopy and macroscopy.

Quick trials using a two megapixel camera for photomicrography - Dave Walker, UK takes some piccies with a borrowed Nikon Coolpix 700 and compares the results with those from another popular image capture route; video stills from a 'C' mount video camera.

A meeting for QMC and PMS members of the Southern Group has been organised in Langton Matravers, Dorset, UK on Saturday, May 20th, 2000. Click here for details.

One of the highlights of the microscopist's year is the Frank Rowntree Meeting organised by the Leeds Microscopical Society. This open national microscopical meeting and exhibition will be held on Sat. June 3rd 2000 in Morley near Leeds, UK. Click here for details.

The Reading Microscopical Society's info' page has been updated. It now includes this years meeting programme and details/application form for the Reading Convention - an open meeting for microscopists on April 15th. Click here for details.