How Paradoxical Questions and Simple Wonder Lead to Great Science

A tiny paper microscope, costing less than a dollar, is revolutionizing science education worldwide. Stanford bioengineer Manu Prakash invented the Foldscope, which has now reached 3 million kids in 150 countries.

"We should all be allowed entry into the mysteries of the living world," Prakash says. His philosophy of "recreational biology" combines practical inventions with pure curiosity-driven research.

On oceanographic expeditions, Prakash discovered single-celled algae that migrate half a kilometer vertically - "like a yo-yo," he says. He also studies cellular "origami" in microbes that extend their necks 200 times their body length to hunt.

Prakash believes anyone can be a recreational biologist with simple tools and a sense of wonder. "Science is everything," he says. "It's every emotion, everything that you have experienced, and all of our existence in the world."