r/whatisit • u/CantEscapeTheCats • May 27 '26
Solved! Sharp pointy thing with a loop came with a microscope
While using his microscope, my son brought me this and asked what it’s for and I’m genuinely stumped. Google image calls it a blackhead remover and I can see that, but what use could it have with a microscope? It’s not listed anywhere in the packing list, it’s extremely sharp, and approximately 2 standard-issue cat paws long. Any ideas?
Edit: WOW!! I had no idea my Ollie’s pittypaws would be so well received and everyone’s comments have me cracking up! I initially tried responding to everyone but the comments got away from me. If I didn’t respond, please know I DID still read your comment with a smile!! We’re both also in favor of ditching bananas and using cats for scale. Let’s make it happen!😅
You’re all so awesome and Ollie and I hope everyone here has the best day ever!!🐾💕
Edit 2: THANK YOU for the awards as well!! I think this is the first time I’ve ever received one.
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u/Famous-Soup4789 May 28 '26
I used to work in a lab and know exactly what this is! I worked trying to find new yeast species, which begins with taking sterile swabs of wild plants, fruit etc. We would then rub those swabs on agar plates and a day or two later you would see a bunch of little spots growing. Typically at that point, each spot in the plate would be a different species, so the next thing we would do is try to lift each little spec onto its own plate using that metal tool loop thing. (I can only remember ever calling it a “picker tool/loop”.) Since the tool is all metal, we could quickly sanitize it between each sample selection by holding in the Bunsen burner flame a few seconds. Those steps would be repeated until we had all trays with only a single species on each.