| Bacterial Water Quality Testing:
A Rising Tide Project for Grades 9 and 10
Glossary |
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| Main
Standards
Addressed Biology
I Standards
Methods Safety Sample Collection Sample Preservation & Storage Bacterial Analysis Calculations Classroom
Activity |
bacteria- Tiny, unicellular, prokaryotic organisms that
reproduce by cell division. coliform bacteria- A group of bacteria which live within the bowels of larger organisms; they are a good indicator of water pollution by feces. colony- A group of bacterial cells that are visible to the naked eye; form on growing medium; volume of colonies is sometimes measured in CFU (colony forming units). density- The amount of something per unit size. Enterococcus- A genus of pathogenic bacteria that can cause abdominal, skin, urinary tract, and blood infections. Escherichia coli- Also known as E. coli; a type of pathogenic bacteria that causes severe cramps and bloody diarrhea. eutrophication- The increase in nutrients in water; occurs naturally but human processes can increase this greatly. fauna- Animal life. fecal coliform- Bacteria usually found in the colon or feces; often used as indicators of fecal contamination of water. Fecal Streptococci- A type of streptococcus commonly found in the colon and feces of organisms. flora- Plant life. geometric mean- The mean of n numbers expressed as the n-th root of their product. incubator- A piece of lab equipment used to keep a set of samples at a certain temperature for an amount of time. indigenous- Native; occurring naturally in the specified place. medium- A liquid or solid that is prepared for the growth, maintenance, or storage of microorganisms; growth medium is filled with nutrients necessary to a microorganism's growth. microorganism- A living organism too small to be seen with the naked eye. microscope- A piece of laboratory equipment used to magnify small things or characteristics of small things that are too small to view with the naked eye. oxygen demand- The amount of oxygen consumed by aerobic organisms. pathogenic bacteria- Bacteria that cause disease. petri dish- A round, shallow dish usually used to hold growth medium for the purpose of culturing, or growing, cells. pollutant- A material that can contaminate an object or area if it reaches a certain level designated as dangerous. protozoan- A single-celled, animal-like, eukaryotic organism of the Kingdom Protista; consists of parasites that can cause many diseases. standard deviation- The square root of the variance in a set of values. turbid- describes water that has reduced water clarity due to suspended materials. turbidity- Relative water clarity; a measurement of the extent to which light passing through the water is reduced by suspended particles. virus- A noncellular biological entity that can reproduce only within a host cell; consists of a nucleic acid covered by a protein coat. water quality criteria- A set of standards or rules that describes levels of pollutants and their values that indicate when they are considered dangerous. *Some definitions were obtained from BioTech's Life Science Dictionary and The Museum of Bacteria.
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