Bacterial Lab Background Information:

Characteristics:
Prokaryotic cells are the simplest of all the cells. Bacteria are
prokaryotes and unicellular. They have genetic material in the form of a
circular chromosome. 

Classification:
Bacteria fall into two major categories: Eubacteria and Archaebacteria.
Eubacteria are common types that occur all around us, usually on
surfaces and in the soil. You can only find Archaebacteria in extreme
environments, like hot sulfur springs. Archaebacteria are thought to be
some of the oldest life forms on earth.

Diet: 
Bacteria have a wide range of diets. Some are heterotrophs (they eat
other organisms) and others are autotrophs (they make their own food).
Some of these are parasitic bacteria kill their host while others help their
host. Autotrophic bacteria make their own food, either by photosynthesis
(which uses sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water to make food) or by
chemosynthesis (which uses carbon dioxide, water and chemicals like
ammonia to make food) and include the bacteria found living in legume
roots and in ocean vents.

Types of Bacteria:
There are many different types of bacteria. Some bacteria are rod-shaped
(these are called bacilli), some are round (called cocci, like
streptococcus bacteria), and some are spiral-shaped (spirilla).  Some
bacteria need atmospheric oxygen to live (these are called aerobic
bacteria), but others do not (these are called anaerobic bacteria; they get
their oxygen from other molecular compounds).

Where Bacteria Are Found:

Bacteria rule the world.  No matter where you go or what you’re doing,
you cannot escape them. Nor would you want to. They’re inside you, on
every surface you touch, in the air you breathe, and an integral part of
every living thing around you. Bacteria are found almost everywhere on
Earth, including in the seas and lakes, on all continents (including
Antarctica), in the soil, and in tissues of plants and animals. 

Reproduction:
Bacteria grow in colonies and reproduce rapidly by asexual budding or
fission, in which the cell increases in size and then splits in two. Bacteria
can also undergo conjugation in which two separate bacteria exchange
pieces of DNA.

Resting Stages:
Under unfavorable environmental conditions, bacteria develop a thick
outer wall and enter a dormant phase in this resting state; the bacterium
is called a spore. The bacteria can remain in this dormant state for long
periods of time, surviving conditions that kill many other organisms.