According to embodiments of the present invention, a bioreactor for growing photoautotrophic organisms is provided. The bioreactor includes a vessel configured to receive the photoautotrophic organisms, the vessel having a longitudinal axis, which a circumferential wall extends around said axis, wherein said circumferential wall is translucent so as to enable light to enter the vessel from the outside for acting on the photoautotrophic organisms, wherein a device for providing an uneven distribution of the light intensity within said vessel along said axis is provided.

A fluid transfer system includes a transfer carousel capable of rotational and/or translational movement; at least one holding vessel (e.g. syringe) having a plunger, wherein the syringe is connected to the transfer carousel such that the movement of the transfer carousel results in movement of the syringe and wherein the syringe is capable of translational movement relative to the transfer carousel; a drive motor connected to the syringe that is capable of controlling the position of the plunger; and a peripheral module comprising at least one vessel that is capable of containing a fluid, wherein the vessel has an opening that can be mated with the syringe to allow fluid transfer between the vessel and the syringe. Methods for transferring a fluid are also disclosed.

Provided is a culturing observation apparatus including: a light source portion that radiates illumination light into a culturing container, in which cells are being cultured, from a side surface of the culturing container, which is optically transparent, within a predetermined angular range; an image-acquisition portion that, when the illumination light radiated from the light source portion is scattered at the cells in the culturing container and when a portion of this scattered light passes through a bottom surface of the culturing container, acquires an image by capturing the scattered light that has passed through the bottom surface; and a transmitting portion that transmits the image acquired by the image-acquisition portion to an exterior.

Solar-redshift systems comprise an integral array of redshift modules, each having at least a focusing device, a target, and a quantum-dot vessel. The quantum-dot vessel contains quantum dots that emit light having an emission wavelength. The focusing device directs incident solar radiation through a focusing gap and toward the quantum-dot vessel, or into a slab waveguide and then toward the quantum-dot vessel, causing the quantum dots to emit redshifted light having the emission wavelength. The redshifted light is directed to the target, examples of which include a photovoltaic material or a living photosynthetic organism. The target has increased sensitivity or response to photons having the wavelength of the redshifted light. A trapping reflector component of the quantum-dot vessel prevents loss of redshifted light to the environment outside the solar-redshift system and allows undesirable infrared light to be removed from the system.