BIOL 120: Lab Report #1 Name ___________________________

Scientific Method: “Is Yeast Alive?”

Hypothesis (0.5 pts):

Predictions (0.5 pts):

Raw Data and Calculations (3 pts):

0 minutes 5 minutes 10 minutes 15 minutes 20 minutes 25 minutes
Test tube 1

Test tube 2

Average

Test tube 3

Test tube 4

Average

Results (5 pts):

Figure 1: Average balloon diameter (representing the amount of CO 2 produced) over time for two
different yeast solution treatments: yeast with sugar and yeast without sugar
Conclusions (was your hypothesis supported or not supported? Why or why not?) (2 pts):

Questions for further thought:

1. Why is it better to have two test tubes with yeast, sugar, and water and two test tubes with just
yeast and water, instead of only one test tube with each type of mixture? (3 pts)

2. When you make bread, if you just mix flour, sugar and water, the dough does not rise, and the
bread will be flat and hard. If you include yeast in the bread dough, then the dough rises and the
bread is bigger and fluffier. Can you explain how the yeast helps the bread dough to rise? (3 pts)

3. I just followed the recipe to make bread, but it did not rise. Assuming I did not make any errors in
following the recipe, what might be the cause of this failure (hint: think about why yeast might
have an expiration date on the package)? (3 pts)