The editors congratulate the winners of the fourth annual Microscopy Today Innovation Awards competition. These awards were established to honor innovative microscopy-related products and methods that appeared in the previous year.

It has been known for decades that clathrin- and dynamin-mediated endocytosis is the major pathway for recycling the components of vesicle membranes after strong stimulation and high rates of exocytosis in secretory cells. This pathway occurs over tens of seconds to minutes after fusion of the secretory vesicle membrane with the plasma membrane. It resembles classical receptor-mediated endocytosis, but it has a trigger that is unique to secretion: the sudden appearance of the secretory vesicle membrane on the surface of the cell. However, the spatial localization, the relationship to individual fusion events, the nature of the cargo, and the timing and nature of nucleation events have been unknown. An elegant study by Mary Bittner, Rachel Aikman, and Ronald Holz has addressed these issues.

Fluorescence stereo microscopes are a great and wondrous technology with light sources and optics that can be configured to illuminate a wide array of fluorophors with high sensitivity. There are many applications, however, where a user does not really need all of the power and versatility of a specialized integrated instrument: a simple system that excites just one or two classes of fluorophors will suffice.

Microscope users can become fatigued by awkward sitting positions and complicated controls. This affects many users in microbiology, cytology, hematology, and pathology labs. In recent years researchers have conducted studies to examine microscope ergonomic issues for users with various body heights. This research is critical because data from occupational and medical literature clearly indicate that occupational-based injuries at the workplace are common where microscopes are used extensively. Muscular-skeletal conditions, including shoulder, neck, and back aches, are the most prevalent injuries, with more than 77% of users experiencing these issues.

The global consumer market wants smaller, faster, more reliable, lower-cost products. The semiconductor industry has responded by the doubling of chip transistor density every two years, closely following Moore's Law. To meet their goals, the industry has made huge investments in R&D and manufacturing to miniaturize components, increase the size of substrates (wafers), improve the productivity of factories, and invent new packaging technology.

Recently there has been a lot of discussion on the Microscopy Listserver about the fact that it frequently seems to take forever for a vacuum system to pump down to an operating level. It turns out that there are several interesting and fundamental reasons for this. Because of the widespread interest in this topic, it would seem worthwhile to review these reasons briefly. I think that anyone who works with an instrument that has a vacuum system could find this article useful. I am afraid, however, that the fact that it contains a number of mathematical equations will scare some people away. This should not be so, because no difficult mathematical manipulations are involved, and all the equations form the basis for interesting and important relationships, which I hope are described in straightforward, understandable terms.

Bone is an important material in many scientific disciplines because of its unique structure-property relationships, which are intrinsically dependent on its nanoscale components, bioapatite and collagen. As a living tissue, bone has evolved over hundreds of millions of years, and most vertebrates are now extinct. However, the vast majority of the relevant literature has engaged only modern bone tissues, neglecting the deep time perspective. Why?

Microscopy Today congratulates the fourth annual group of Innovation Award winners. The ten innovations described below move several microscopy techniques forward: light microscopy, scanning probe microscopy, electron microscopy, ion microscopy, and hybrid microscopy-analysis methods. These innovations will make imaging and analysis more powerful, more flexible, more productive, and easier to accomplish.

The acronym for “certified electron microscopy technologist” is CEMT, and these letters designate the bearer as having passed the written and practical exams necessary to become “certified”! The acronym was approved by the MSA Council to more firmly provide a professional identification of certification in the area of transmission electron microscopy (TEM) of biological tissue. A CEMT may use these initials after his or her name for as long as the certification remains valid (for example, Jane Doe, AA, BS, CEMT).

James Bradley was an English astronomer most famous for his discovery of the aberration of starlight. The finding was an important piece of evidence supporting Copernicus's theory that the Earth moved around the sun and also provided an alternative way to estimate the velocity of light.

Selected postings from the Microscopy Listserver from May 1, 2013 to June 30, 2013. Complete listings and subscription information can be obtained at http://www.microscopy.com. Postings may have been edited to conserve space or for clarity.

Following is a list of microscopy related meetings and courses. The editors would greatly appreciate input to this list via the electronic submission form under “events/other microscopy events” at the MSA webpage: www.microscopy.org. We will gladly add hypertext links to the notice on the web and insert a listing of the meeting in the next issue.

I know this question gets asked over and over, but I am determined that there must be a basis for choosing either side of a TEM grid when picking up sections. Which side works best and why—the dull side or the shiny side? By the way, I love you and simply must meet you to share my micrographs. Is there a time when we could get together?

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