Marie K. Herring

Location: Stanford University, Prof. Manu Prakash
Position: Visiting Scholar
Duration: Sept. 2015 - Present

Foldscope Website, Foldscope Community Gallery

Description: The Foldscope is a $1 origami microscope developed by the Manu Prakash and Jim Cybulski at Stanford.  This device gives 140x magnification and 2 micron resolution.  For six months, starting in September 2015, I held a temporary appointment in the Prakash Lab.  My main goal was two-fold; firstly, I was developing new polymer lenses, namely those that would have a gradient index of refraction to reduce spherical aberration in Foldscope lenses and/or provide lower magnification.  Secondly, I worked on design improvements, and add-ons for incorporation into the Foldscope design.  This included designing, prototyping, and field testing an imaging station that connected cell phones to the Foldscope, making time-lapses as well as picture and video capture effortless. I also helped to establish the business outside of Stanford, working operations, business models, fundraising and logistics for an independent entity. 

Key Achievements:

• Developed a 100x lens
• Playing a key role in the organization and execution of a two week workshop and field study in India in December 2015
• Designed and created Imaging Stations that, when paired with the Foldscope, allowed easy picture and video capture with any cell phone camera.