When Dutch spectacle-maker Zacharias Janssen invented the microscope at the end of the 16th century, he had no idea that he was opening the door to a brand new, tiny–and yet seemingly infinite–world. Since then we have been able to study this microcosm that has provided us with insight into virtually every scientific field ever devised: physics, chemistry, biology, medicine, and a host of others.
Over the centuries the technology behind microscopes has improved to an almost unimaginable degree. We were once able to see objects almost invisible to the naked eye, while now the most powerful microscopes can show us nano-objects a billionth of an inch in size. Even our own bodies become realms of fantastically intricate wonder when viewed through a microscopic lens.
