Seed cutter

thingiverse

Here is the rewritten text in American English without any foreign characters: In Seed Ecology/Seed Science, you often need to split a seed in half - for my part, it was so that we could get it under a microscope or x-ray machine to measure the thickness of its protective seed coat. Splitting seeds in half is also a great way to show students the different parts of a seed, especially if the seeds are stained to improve contrast. (I suggest a lesson plan based around this seed cutter below, where students compare the germination time of seeds with damaged or intact seed coats.) Above: A diagram of a wheat seed. (Source) Splitting seeds in half usually involves holding the seed with pliers while you cut it, but you may crush the seed or lose it. Moreover, very small seeds (1 mm wide) are difficult or impossible to hold with pliers. This seed cutter makes the process fast and easy. Place a seed into the bowl and tap the cutter on the table. The bowl's elongated shape will cause the seed to align lengthwise. Place a standard scraper blade into the slot. Hold it in the center so that your fingers cover the bowl and prevent the cut seed from flying out. Push the blade down. The seed will be split near its center line. Invert and tap the cutter on the table to free the seed. The slot passes through one side of the cutter so that you can push out any debris that settles inside it. The split seed in the photo gallery is a chive seed measuring 3 x 1 mm (0.118 x 0.039 inch). Even a seed this small was aligned and split in the correct direction! Print Settings Rafts: No Supports: No Resolution: 0.2 Infill: 10% Notes: The slot was designed to be 0.5 inches wide. The seed cutter is best used with seeds that are about 1/4 inch long. Important Safety Note: When using the seed cutter, make sure your fingers are clear of the blade and the seed. It's also a good idea to use gloves to protect your hands from any sharp edges. Changelog 17 Feb 2016 Added a school project idea using this seed cutter for Thingiverse's MakerEd Project Challenge. Coming up with a reasonable experiment was tricky, so wish me luck! 8 Feb 2016 Initial release. Tinkercad source document https://www.tinkercad.com/things/ltyhfMBC3oy-seed-cutter