I’m looking for a gift for my 15 year old brother. He’s well into his science and astronomy and loves taking things apart. I bought him a telescope last year, but I’m at a bit of a loss this year. Any ideas?

The great thing about 15 year olds is that it’s quite easy to get different ideas for them. Once people get older you start finding that they already have everything they could ever need! Thanks for the idea that he’s into science, I’m sure he loved your telescope. How about going the other way this time? Instead of something that looks out into the depths of space, what about something to peer at very small objects.

I would suggest something like the Carson Optical zPix USB Microscope, which would be a great gadget for someone interested in science to play with. Here are some of the features:

• USB Digital Microscope With 26 – 130X Optical Zoom.
• Integrated Digital Camera captures still images and video clips.
• View prepared specimen slides or place right onto ordinary objects to view.
• Impressive 26-130x digital zoom allows you to see incredible details of ordinary objects plus the Lens has a 5x Optical Zoom capability.
• Battery-free operation – draws power directly through your computers USB Port.

It’s worth keeping in mind that it only supports Windows, so make sure your brother uses a PC and not a Mac. Here are all the bits it comes with:

It comes complete with a specimen base, three blank slides, one prepared slide, forceps, an eyedropper, USB cable, and a CD-ROM with applications software. It claims to be very easy to use and it on sale from Buy.com at $35. That’s pretty good value if I may say so myself!