It is cold and flu season here in South Carolina, and I had the misfortune to succumb to a cold that made my nose run nonstop. But I didn’t let an illness keep me from exploring with my Foldscope, so I did what any good scientist would do - as my nose dripped, I caught a drop on a slide, let it evaporate, and took a look at it under my Foldscope 2.0. Read on to find out what I saw!

Snowflakes

Maybe it was because of the cold and wintery weather outside, but the first thing I thought as I looked at the slide, was that I had entered a winter wonderland! The shapes on the slide looked just like those of snowflakes. The fractal patterns were beautiful!

Ferning

I did some research into this phenomenon and I found out that “ferning” is a term that is used by doctors when they look at the fractal patterns created by the evaporation of different bodily fluids. The resulting patterns are used as indicators of different health factors. For example, nasal mucus ferning can help determine the type of cold or allergy the person is suffering from, cervical mucus ferning patterns can be used to track fertility and ovulation patterns in women, and tear ferning patterns can be indicative of the development of dry eye disease.

Runny Noses

So, even though my nose was running like a leaky faucet, there were substantial amounts of ferning with little space in between the branches, which indicates a relatively healthy secretion. And my cold did clear up in a couple of days. I do wish I had known about this phenomenon before getting the cold, though. I would have tracked the ferning patterns throughout the development of the cold to see if and how they changed.

I love that you can learn something new every day with a Foldscope! If you have a cold, use it as an opportunity to explore the ferning patterns of your body. Producing tears of joy or sorrow? Study them under your Foldscope to see if there is a difference or just to enjoy the beauty of microscopic fractals!

Have you looked at fluid ferning under a Foldscope 2.0? Use your Foldscope to dive into the microscopic world and find the beauty that lies within some not so beautiful macroscopic things. Share your microscopic images and thoughts on the Microcosmos. Be sure to tag us on social media when you post the results of your explorations, creations, and discoveries! We love to see how Foldscopers around the world are using their Foldscopes in new and innovative ways!

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Sources:

What is mucus?: https://www.sinusdoctor.com/understanding-nasal-discharge/#:~:text=Clear%20mucus%2C%20primarily%20composed%20of,keep%20the%20nasal%20passages%20healthy. 

Mucus Ferning: https://medizzy.com/feed/39161695 

Mucus Ferning:   https://www.researchgate.net/publication/333801491_The_role_of_the_fern_test_in_the_treatment_of_rhinitis 

Tear and Mucus Ferning: https://www.jgerontology-geriatrics.com/article/view/217