On Thursday, we went to the nature lab to look at rice straw, bagasse, etc under the microscope. We were introduced to the lab's compound and stereo microscopes, include the protoscope, which is a hand-held microscope that takes photos of the examined object.
The rice hull had a glossy outer surface, and a square-like structure. The rice straw, on the other hand, was entirely linear in structure. The straw itself isn't a perfect cylinder. It has multiple ridges that probably aid in delivering waste and nutrients to the tips of the place. The bagasse is linear as well, but individual strands are broken (think Pantene Pro-V commercials where they show how it repairs damaged hair).
The sugarcane waste was really interesting. Our professor showed us that the internal substance was made of a purple, hexagonal, foamy material. It was very different from the outer surface of the sugarcane, which is hard and wood-like. It looked like sugar crystals, although it may serve a different purpose than the part of the plant traditionally extracted as "sugarcane."
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