MICROBE MISSION  

DESCRIPTION :Students will answer questions, solve problems, and analyze data pertaining to viruses and single celled organisms.

 NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS : 2          APPROXIMATE TIME : 50 MINUTES

EVENT PARAMETERS :

•  Students may use non-programmable calculators.

•  No reference materials will be allowed.

THE COMPETITION :

•  The event may be run as stations. Students will be given a number of questions/activities pertaining to different types of microbes. The content areas that may be covered at the various levels of competition appear below.

 REGIONAL/ STATE TOURNAMENTS

 •  Different kinds of microscopes and their uses.

•  Various parts of the light microscope and magnification determination

•  Recognition and function of nucleus, mitochondria and chloroplasts, and their possible microbial origin.

•  Differences, including environmental locations, among viruses, bacteria, Archae, fungi, and algal and animal like protists.

•  Role of microbes in food production, spoilage and preservation

f. Estimation and/or calculation of size based on scales in pictures or microscopic information and amount of  the visual field occupied.

g. Diseases caused by different kind of microbes and the treatment of these diseases.

h. At least 30% of the questions should involve process skills

NATIONAL TOURNAMENT

•  All material from state and regional level

•  Importance and size of bacterial and fungal spores.

•  Role of microbes in the formation/cause of plant diseases.

•  Cause and economic aspects of algal blooms.

•  Microbial competition.

•  At least 50% of the questions should involve process skills

•  Some questions/stations may involve the use of a microscope. High quality photographs with appropriate scales may be used instead.

•  Process skills may involve data interpretation from graphs and tables, use of a dichotomous key, drawing conclusions, calculations of mean, median, and growth rates, metric conversions, determining actual size of the organism, inferences, and making observations. Students may be asked to perform simple laboratory procedures, but if this activity is done, sufficient information will be provided at the appropriate stations.

SAMPLE QUESTIONS:

•  Provide two differences between bacteria and fungi.
•  Using the following key, determine (from pictures) which cell, A, B, or C is considered an alga.
•  Based on the following graph, determine which organism is best suited for growth in acid environments.
•  A cell is observed through a light microscope at 4x magnification. The cell takes up about half of the visual field. What is the approximate length of this organism?
•  Students observe a Petri plate with many different colonies on it. Based on the color of the colony, how many different kinds of organisms do you detect? Which type of organism appears to be the most prevalent?
•  From the following picture, identify the organelle, provide its function, and state which type of microbe it is unique to.
•  What type of microbe is involved in the production of most breads? What type of organism is responsible for polio?
•  Based on the following graph, what will be the microbial population/ml after 3.5 hours of growth?
•  Match the disease with the type of organism that causes it

 SCORING :
Highest number of correct answers will determine the winner. Selected questions may be used as tie breakers.

POSSIBLE RESOURCES :

http://www.cellsalive.com

http://www.science.nsta.org/enewsletter/2005-08/ss0311_14.pdf   (also good for disease detective)

http://www.foodsafety.psu.edu/nie/nie.html

http://lifesciences.envmed.rochester.edu/pdfs/LSLC_brochure_web.pdf

The Microcosmos Curriculum Guide to Exploring Microbial Space, Kendall/Hunt (out of print but a useful resource if it can be found; contact the publisher for more information)