A magnifying glass (called a hand lens in laboratory contexts) is a convex lens that is used to produce a magnified image of an object. The lens is usually mounted in a frame with a handle (see image).
A sheet magnifier consists of many very narrow concentric ring-shaped lenses, such that the combination acts as a single lens but is much thinner. This arrangement is known as a Fresnel lens.
The magnifying glass is an icon of detective fiction, particularly that of Sherlock Holmes.
Read more about Magnifying Glass: History, Magnification, Alternatives
Famous quotes containing the words magnifying and/or glass:
“The best way to compel weak-minded people to adopt our opinion, is to frighten them from all others, by magnifying their danger.”
—Philip Dormer Stanhope, 4th Earl Chesterfield (1694–1773)
“Nor do I try to keep a garden, only
An avocado in a glass of water—”
—James Merrill (b. 1926)