2
1. LABORATORY ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT
magnetic fields about them, and therefore cannot be located within perhaps 20 ft of the microscope, but they can be hung outside of the room
in a hall, or perhaps be put in the preparation room.
The microscope room must be in essence a darkroom, although not as
light tight as a photographic darkroom. It is essential that the room have
some sort of forced ventilation for a microscope liberates a good deal of
heat, and the operator will spend hours of time in the room with the
door closed. The photographic darkroom should adjoin the microscope
room so that the operator can go in easily to unload and load photographic plates. He may also wish to develop plates as they are exposed
to keep track of what he is doing, so the darkroom will be in constant
demand whenever the microscope is being operated.
The darkroom need not be elaborate, for the photographic requirements of electron microscopy are specific and limited. Darkroom mess
mostly can be eliminated if photographic development is carried on
within a very large sink. This should be big enough to accommodate at
least four 11 X 14 in. trays. Even this assumes that a circulating tank for
print washing stands outside of the sink and simply drains into it. At
least two faucets should be provided, one of which is used for print
washing. In addition there must be bench space for a good photographic
enlarger and its easel, as well as bench space to lay out enlarging paper
and for a print dryer.
An active electron microscope laboratory certainly should have its own
darkroom and not be required to share these facilities with other groups.
The darkroom will be in such constant demand that others using it will
not only create annoyance, but seriously impair efficiency.
The preparation room will serve a certain number of quite specific
functions, and it can best be arranged so that each of these is carried on
in its own particular place. The principal activities will include: (1) sectioning, with a microtome and its associated equipment; (2) tissue preparation, with space for small animal dissection; (3) chemical work, with
a balance and a pH meter where solutions can be prepared; (4) general
purpose light microscopy; (5) tissue dehydration requiring a sink; (6)
"dirty work" include glass washing, with a sink and preferably with a
table topped with asbestos board and equipped with a Bunsen burner
where soldering operations, minor mechanical repair work, and simple
glass blowing can be carried on; (7) several kinds of storage areas, including shelving for chemicals and pieces of equipment, and drawers for
small objects including dissection tools. In addition, there should be
1. LABORATORY ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT
magnetic fields about them, and therefore cannot be located within perhaps 20 ft of the microscope, but they can be hung outside of the room
in a hall, or perhaps be put in the preparation room.
The microscope room must be in essence a darkroom, although not as
light tight as a photographic darkroom. It is essential that the room have
some sort of forced ventilation for a microscope liberates a good deal of
heat, and the operator will spend hours of time in the room with the
door closed. The photographic darkroom should adjoin the microscope
room so that the operator can go in easily to unload and load photographic plates. He may also wish to develop plates as they are exposed
to keep track of what he is doing, so the darkroom will be in constant
demand whenever the microscope is being operated.
The darkroom need not be elaborate, for the photographic requirements of electron microscopy are specific and limited. Darkroom mess
mostly can be eliminated if photographic development is carried on
within a very large sink. This should be big enough to accommodate at
least four 11 X 14 in. trays. Even this assumes that a circulating tank for
print washing stands outside of the sink and simply drains into it. At
least two faucets should be provided, one of which is used for print
washing. In addition there must be bench space for a good photographic
enlarger and its easel, as well as bench space to lay out enlarging paper
and for a print dryer.
An active electron microscope laboratory certainly should have its own
darkroom and not be required to share these facilities with other groups.
The darkroom will be in such constant demand that others using it will
not only create annoyance, but seriously impair efficiency.
The preparation room will serve a certain number of quite specific
functions, and it can best be arranged so that each of these is carried on
in its own particular place. The principal activities will include: (1) sectioning, with a microtome and its associated equipment; (2) tissue preparation, with space for small animal dissection; (3) chemical work, with
a balance and a pH meter where solutions can be prepared; (4) general
purpose light microscopy; (5) tissue dehydration requiring a sink; (6)
"dirty work" include glass washing, with a sink and preferably with a
table topped with asbestos board and equipped with a Bunsen burner
where soldering operations, minor mechanical repair work, and simple
glass blowing can be carried on; (7) several kinds of storage areas, including shelving for chemicals and pieces of equipment, and drawers for
small objects including dissection tools. In addition, there should be