Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

I am almost finished with a project in microbiology regarding genetic mutation of bacteria under different stimuli (temperature, chemical, pH, etc.) However, I need help refining my research because it is too ambiguous. Can someone help me clear up all the data I have collected so I have a clearer result?

Hi Daniel,

We would love to help you if you could give us some information about the experiments you did and what you mean by 'ambiguous'data. What bacteria did you use, how did you cause mutations and how did you determine that mutations were present? Get back to us with some details and we'll see what we can do to clear up the ambiguity.

Sybee

Hi Daniel,

I agree with the previous expert that if you provide us with a little more details about what your main question and hypothesis are, the experimental method you used to test your hypothesis, and what your results are, we'd be able to give you more helpful advice. Was there a specific stimuli that you hypothesized would result in the most mutations in your bacterium? Which bacterium did you use for your experiment? Was the bacterium grown in broth culture or on plates when you applied the stimuli? How did you alter the temperature and pH? What chemical stimuli did you use? How did you assess for the number of mutations that occurred in the bacterium? All of this information would be very helpful for us to understand what you have done, and we'd be glad to help you look at your data and brainstorm about what your results are showing.

Connie