Does anyone know if learning how to make tissue slides is usually a part of the undergraduate biology major curriculum? It's what we've been working on during labs in my cell biology class for the last several weeks, and I kind of got the impression from my teacher today that it actually isn't.
It's also interesting to note that, although the preparing of tissue slides is difficult and time consuming and delicate and a general pain in the ass, it's actually a pretty lucrative business. The sort of slides we'll be making by the end of the course could sell for $20-30 a pop, apparently. And although the equipment and materials would be ridiculously expensive, when you make slides, you could potentially make A LOT of them at once. My classmates and I will be making 145 slides out of our batch of tissue, which is only a fraction of what could be made with said batch. Although all our slides won't be wonderful quality, if you had someone who could make slides well, that's $2900 with those 145 alone. Like I said, pretty labor intensive, and you are working with xylene, which is carcinogenic, but you're looking to make some money.