MUSEUM LOANS BEN FRANKLIN MICROSCOPE FOR TERCENTENARY CELEBRATION IN PHILIDELPHIA    1744 John Cuff Compound Monocular Microscope With the celebration of Benjamin Franklin’s 300th birthday in Philadelphia this year, a new multimedia exhibition entitled, “In Search of a Better World,” at the National Constitution Center has opened. For this exhibition, the National Museum of Health and Medicine has loaned a 1744 John Cuff compound monocular microscope from its Billings Collection to the exhibit, to allow visitors to view a microscope similar to the one that Franklin used for his research. The Philadelphia exhibition seeks to engage and immerse a broad audience in the life and times of an extraordinary self-made man. Franklin, a scientist, inventor and entrepreneur, used microscopes regularly to view, as he wrote in his 1751 “Poor Richard’s Almanac,” “the most remarkably entertaining Objects.” Franklin was known to have used Cuff microscope, exactly like the one loaned by the museum, which was developed in 1744. An interactive display is set up next to the Cuff microscope in the exhibition, where visitors can use a contemporary microscope to look at the same specimens Franklin did, making hypotheses, performing experiments and drawing conclusions. The loaned microscope was built by John Cuff in 1744. Franklin purchased his from Joseph Breintnall, a friend and fellow Junto Society member. Franklin formed the Junto Society along with 12 other members who were dedicated to “mutual improvement,” in society. Franklin wrote in his “Poor Richard’s Almanack,” “That admirable Instrument the MICROSCOPE has opened to us of these latter Ages, a World utterly unknown to the Ancients. There are very few Substances, in which it does not shew something curious and unexpected.” Using the microscope, Franklin observed blood cells, peacock feathers, and bones. Dr. Page Talbott, chief curator of "Benjamin Franklin: In Search of Better World," described the Cuff microscope as “a very important part of Ben Franklin’s work. He was fascinated by all things in nature and for him observation was at the center of his scientific work. The microscope allowed him to observe nature at an entirely new level of detail." The microscope is made of brass and rests on a wooden base, with an accessories drawer underneath for the storage of slides and various eye pieces. The microscope also has a unique pyramid-shaped storage case designed specifically for the piece. After Cuff introduced the compound microscope in 1744, European makers used it as a model for crafting new instruments well into the 19th century. The versatile, user-friendly design and clear focus of the microscope accounted for its popularity. The microscope is part of the Billings Collection at the National Museum of Health and Medicine, which consists of more than 800 pieces. The collection is the world's largest and most representative in tracing the development of the basic tool of the bioscientist over the last 400 years. Many of the microscopes are on display in the exhibit, “Evolution of the Microscope.” The exhibit includes the 17th-century, handcrafted, leather and gold-tooled microscope used by Robert Hooke in the preparation of "Micrographia," one of the first books ever written about the observation of “cells” through a microscope. The exhibition, “Benjamin Franklin: In Search of a Better World” is on display at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia through April 30, after which it will travel to four other U.S. cities (St. Louis, Houston, Denver, and Atlanta) and then Paris (although the microscope will not be on view in Paris—only a limited version of the exhibition will be traveling abroad), closing in March 2008 (full details of the tour are available at the website, www.benfranklin300.org").