It’s great, Lagrangian, to have someone who can throw in some exact analyses in addition to the experiences and wisdom here! I enjoy many of your posts.
Here’s a quick video I did showing how to cleanly capture steel dust when sharpening with the diamond and ceramic stones: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XF-cuE16U_0
Hi Clay,
Nice! Using/generating soap foam is a brilliant idea! 
Sincerely,
–Lagrangian
[quote quote=“BassLakeDan” post=3042]..
The good news is that the materials you are dealing with, and are exposed to, are low toxicity. Diamond (dust) is virtually inert as far as the human body is concerned. Iron is, actually, a necessary human nutrient. About the worst you have at your sharpening bench is Chromium Oxide, but it has very low solubility in water so therefore its hazard level is low when ingested. .
..[/quote]
well, at the risk of being an obnoxiously self-quoting forum poster, I will quote from myself above. I think, on a hobby level, the whole thing is probably much ado about nothing..
anyway, what we really care bout is things and hardware and serious boy toys not whimpy dust ! so my question is: what the heck is this thing…
???
Well I think the problem stems not from the toxicity of the materials used, but by the fact that inhaling steel filings can cause tissue damage in the lungs, in the same, albeit less severe way as asbestos, and could lead to cancer over a long period of time.
[quote quote=“BassLakeDan” post=3841]
anyway, what we really care bout is things and hardware and serious boy toys not whimpy dust ! so my question is: what the heck is this thing…
???[/quote]
That is the new 2000x metallurgic scope with a 10mp camera
Looks like a microscope with a trinocular head (1 digital camera, two eyepieces).
The part hanging off to the left looks like a light source, which means the microscope probably has co-axial lighting or whatever it’s called (ie: the objective lense is partially used for imaging, and part of the outer rim of the objective lense is used to focus light onto the sample), which I think is used on many reflected-light microscopes.
Can’t wait to see images from your new metallographic microscope, Clay! 
Sincerely,
–Lagrangian
Correct on all counts
[quote quote=“AnthonyYan” post=3847]Looks like a microscope with a trinocular head (1 digital camera, two eyepieces).
The part hanging off to the left looks like a light source, which means the microscope probably has co-axial lighting or whatever it’s called (ie: the objective lense is partially used for imaging, and part of the outer rim of the objective lense is used to focus light onto the sample), which I think is used on many reflected-light microscopes.
Can’t wait to see images from your new metallographic microscope, Clay!
Sincerely,
–Lagrangian[/quote]
I would have to say: I am with Dan on the dust problem, unless you are generating 2400rpm with your stones I doubt you have much airborn dust (especially if you have a magnet or two mounted).
… but nice work with a sponge.