Biology Assignment

Deinococcus radiodurans: withstand blasts of radiation 1,000

times greater than would kill a human being.
The largest bacteria found so far can actually be seen without
the use of a microscope (Thiomargarita
namibiensis and Epulopiscium fischelsoni). Thiomargarita
namibiensis <thigh-oh-mar-ger-ee-tuh nah-mih-bee-en-sis>,
which means “sulfur pearl of Namibia” is a single celled giant
bacteria that lives in the ocean.
Beef tapeworm is the largest parasite (which causes taeniasis in
human), which can easily grow 7½ meters or 25 feet long!
Imagine that living in your guts!
The smallest known bacteria are so tiny that they were once
thought to be viruses (Mycoplasma).

Oldest living Microbes: 250 million-year-old bacteria

spores have been revived. In 2000, scientists told that they had
revived bacteria that had lain in suspended animation for 250
million years, encased in salt crystals deep in the Earth.
In 1918 more people died from the influenza
virus (approximately 30 million) than died in the First World
War (10 million).
Microbes generate at least half the oxygen we breathe.
If a single bacterium 10 to power minus 12 gram with
a generation time of 20 min would, if it continued to grow
 exponentially for 48 hours, produce a population that weighed
about 4000 times the weight of the earth.
1 .Micro-organisms first appeared on earth about 3.5 billion
years ago. They were very important in sustaining life on our
planet.
1. Microbes generate at least half the oxygen we breathe.
2. Microbes thrive in extremes
of heat, cold, radiation, pressure, acidity and darkness, and
often where no other life forms could exist and where nutrients
come only from inorganic matter.
3. Typically there are between 10,000 and 10 million bacteria
on each hand!
4. The number of germs on your fingertips doubles after you use
the toilet.
5. When you cough germs can travel about 3 meters if you do not
cover your nose and mouth.
6. Almost one million bacteria can be created by one person in a
school day.
7. There are more bacterial cells in our bodies than there are
human cells.
8. While bacteria on the outside of your body can cause
serious infections, the bacteria inside your body
can protect against it. Studies have shown that animals without
gut bacteria are more likely to catch serious infections.
9. Humans have used bacteria to help us in other ways for
thousands of years. Bacteria are used to make yogurt and
cheese. The flavour of these foods comes from bacterial by
products!
10.
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