Students used Biopaddles (containing different nutrients) to grow bacteria from soil and sand samples. These samples were in contact with decomposing pigs placed in different environments. The procedures are outlined in the spreadsheet below.
Microbe Study Procedures
Introduction to Microbes: Why are they important?
Students examined the Biopaddles with microscopes 72 hours after the start of incubation. They recorded their observations about the growth of microbes, comparing decomposing pig samples with control sand and soil samples,looking for patterns.
Students used digital microscopes synched to their iPads and the iPad app "BiopaddlesLite." Applying principles that microbiologists commonly use, students to identified soil microbes according to colony color, size and morphology
At left are images of Bacillus subtilis and Pseudomonas fluoresens from the BioPaddlesLite app.
At right are student pictures from BioPaddles captured with a wireless WiFi-synched microscope.
Based on our results, we could not make firm conclusions about the impact of pig decomposition on soil microbes.
However, we did successfully use the Biopaddle technology together with an iPad app and a synched wireless microscope to identify two important soil decomposing microbes: Bacillus subtilis and Pseudomonas fluorescens