Re: why are coverslips used in a wet mount

Crystal, If you're going to be tested on this, you really should have the answer somewhere in your class notes. The simple answer is to prevent the specimen from moving around -- to keep it in place, squished between two pieces of glass. A coverslip also prevents the delicate lens of the microscope from crashing into your sample and getting all dirty in case you make a mistake while focusing and bring the lens down too far. If you're doing oil immersion, it's also a surface for spreading the oil on, otherwise you'd have to put it directly on the lens (messy) or the sample (even messier and not as effective). I can't think of any other practical uses for a coverslip off the top of my head. Hope this gets there in time, Sanjida