Principles of Microbiology Spring 2022

Assignment 1

Misconception take home quiz:

All statements below can be marked ‘true’ or ‘false’.
1) All soap kills bacteria.
2) E. coli is bad for your health.
3) People with a cold or the flu should take antibiotics to get better.
4) Scientists believe that 99.99% of bacterial species have not yet been discovered.
5) Scientific theories become scientific laws with enough evidence.
6) Many antibiotics we use were produced by other microbes.
7) Organelles are the sites of metabolism in both eukaryotes and prokaryotes.
8) People can become resistant to antibiotics.
9) Vaccines must cause disease to work.
10) Not all bacteria require oxygen to grow.

Glo Germ results:

Describe the areas of the hands that were affected by the Glo Germ in each of the treatments before
washing the hands.

Fingernails Backs of the hands Palms of the hands Knuckles Fingers Wrists

Fist bump

Handshake

High five

Pen sharing

Now, describe the areas affected by Glo Germ after washing the hands. 

Fingernails Backs of the hands Palms of the hands Knuckles Fingers Wrists

Fist bump

Handshake

High five

Pen sharing
 Reflection Questions
1) If Glo Germ was left behind after you washed your hands, what can you change about your
handwashing habits to make them more effective?

2) Notice how easy it is to spread ‘germs’ between people. Which action resulted in the least amount of
‘germ’ transfer?

Ubiquity of Microorganisms results:

After 24 hours of incubation, check the plates. Count the bacterial or fungal colonies and report how
many were on each plate. If there are too many to count, write ‘too many to count.’

Where did you get your sample?  Control

(no swab)

Number of colonies

Colony morphologies seen

Reflection Questions

1) What purpose does the control plate serve?

2) Which plate(s) did you expect to show the most growth? Why? Were your expectations met?

3) If a room can be so full of potentially hazardous microorganisms, what precautions should you take?

Aseptic transfer results:

After 24 hrs. of incubation at 37oC - take a picture of your plate and include in this assignment.

1) Is there any contamination on your plate? If yes, where could it have come from?