Bacteria Lab Report:

AIM: The aim of this experiment is to find out how time affects the growth of bacteria by counting the surface area of the bacteria. HYPOTHESIS: I predict that as the time the bacteria is allowed to grow gets longer, the amount of bacteria will increase until all of its resources are depleted. I made this hypothesis because bacteria undergoes the process of binary fission where the bacteria rapid divides hence supporting my hypothesis. MATERIALS / APPARATUS: These following materials were used in this experiment: 1 Agar Plate, 1 Cotton Swab, 1 Measuring Grid and an Incubator. PROCEDURE: First, take the cotton swab and swab the place where you want to get the bacteria sample from (e.g. door knob). Second, take the swabbed cotton swab and swab it inside the agar plate lightly. Third, close the lid of the agar plate, tape the sides and put the agar plate and put it inside the incubator. Lastly, check on the agar plates and use the measuring grid to get the total surface area of the bacteria (mm2) and record, repeat for further data points. FAIR TESTING:
The following what and how the different variables are being controlled:

Control Variable Temperature Humidity Light

How the Variable is Controlled Incubator controls temperature. Incubator has consistent humidity, Cannot be controlled because of different lighting conditions of lab (Night / Day)
Irrelevant because there is only 1 agar plate and sample cannot be different.

Why the Variable is Controlled (or why should it be)

To make sure growth of bacteria is consistent. To make sure growth of bacteria is consistent. To make sure growth of bacteria is consistent. N/A

Sample

DATA: Time (Hours / Days) Control 48 Hours / 2 Days 168 Hours / 7 Days DATA PROCESSING: Bacteria Count (mm2) 0 43 246

Time and Bacteria Count

300 250 200 150 100 50 0 0 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 246

43

CONCLUSION: The aim of this experiment is to find how time affects the growth of bacteria. I predicted that as the time increases, the bacteria count will also increase because of the constant multiplying of bacteria. My hypothesis was correct because the data clearly shows that the bacteria count on my control with 0 mm2 of bacteria, my second data point with 43 mm2 of bacteria and my final point with 246 mm2 of bacteria that the growth was substantial and undeniable. The bacteria when put in the agar plate start the process of binary fusion aka. he amount of bacteria increases because the bacteria multiplies itself about every 30 minutes and in hours or days the population of the bacteria increases to hundreds of thousands and millions of bacteria. To conclude, as time passes, the amount of bacteria multiplies increases, therefore growing more bacteria. I think that my hypothesis is sound because there isnt any other natural explanation that could explain the results; for example, from the control (0) to one week later (246) and there are no anomalies to the results (0 to 43 to 246). This source confirms my hypothesis about bacterial growth: http://www.cellsalive.com/ecoli.htm which explains the process of binary fission specifically a new cell wall grows through the center forming two daughter cells, each with the same genetic material as the parent cell. If the environment is optimum, the two daughter cells may divide into four in 20 minutes, therefore confirming my hypothesis.

I think the data I collected was good. I think the data collected was good because the data followed the upward trend of the data points (0 to 246) and showed no anomalies what so ever on the graph, however the incubator broke down one day before the final data point, but there was no significant deviation in the data. The data makes scientific sense because it perfectly fits into the process of binary fission where the bacterium multiplies itself over and over again. The previous source cited also proves the data by explaining binary growth aka. bacterial multiplication. I think if I did the experiment again, I would not get exactly the same data because of the application of the sample will not be completely exact, however the general upward trend of the data will be repeatable because of binary fission. EVALUATION: Here is a table of errors made in the experiment and improvements that could be taken: Error Temperature Light Improvements Make sure that the incubator does not break down next time. Conduct the experiment in another place where the lighting there is consistent the whole day

This experiment could be improved next time by recording more data points so I could observe the growth limit of the bacteria and also using more than one agar plate (for example 3+) to further make the results as accurate as possible.