How Do Bacteria Grow

Where Do Bacteria Grow?

I had some prior knowledge about bacteria before conducting the environmental sampling lab. I knew that bacteria could be found in many different places. Also, different types of bacteria grow in different conditions. From prior experience, I remembered that to grow bacteria in a petri dish one must follow the proper technique. I chose to test how much bacteria grows on toilet handle in the bathroom. My prediction for the experiment before it was conducted was that there would be a large amount of bacterial growth on the handle of a public bathroom toilet. This was my hypothesis because many people touch the toilet handle after using the bathroom and before washing their hands. I predicted that the most bacteria would be found on objects that were touched by many different people throughout a day. To conduct this experiment, everyone in the class got in pairs. Each pair shared a petri dish to grow bacteria in. The first thing the partners did once they got their petri dish was to turn the dish upside …show more content…
Throughout this experiment I have learned several things. One thing I learned is that you can find bacterial growth in most places. However, different types of bacteria grow in different places depending on the environmental conditions and the required factors for growth for the specific bacteria. Also, I learned is the impact an error in the procedure can have. I think there were some errors in our environmental sampling lab. Something like completely removing the lid of a petri dish can alter the results because it can allow the air to contaminate the agar. Not properly swabbing the sample can also affect the results because you may not transfer any bacteria onto the agar. Lastly, I learned that since bacterial growth can be found almost everywhere you go it is very important to wash your hands. To remove bacteria from your hands, you should wash your hands thoroughly with soap and warm