Question

A scientist found that a Petri dish from an experiment had not been cleaned several days earlier. In the dish, she discovered a bacterial culture that she had not seen during the experiment. How could she gather evidence to support a inference about whether the bacteria had developed from the material left from the earlier experiment?ResponsesATake a sample of the bacteria and grow it in an incubator.Take a sample of the bacteria and grow it in an incubator.BGather dirty Petri dishes from other labs to see if they grow the same bacteria.Gather dirty Petri dishes from other labs to see if they grow the same bacteria.CCheck all the clean Petri dishes for residue from the previous experiment.Check all the clean Petri dishes for residue from the previous experiment.DTry the original experiment again, do not clean some of the Petri dishes, and see if the bacteria grow.

Answer 1

To gather evidence to support an inference about whether the bacteria in the Petri dish had developed from the material left from the earlier experiment, the best approach would be:

A. Take a sample of the bacteria and grow it in an incubator.

By culturing the bacteria in a controlled environment, the scientist can analyze its growth characteristics, morphology, and possibly perform genetic sequencing to determine its identity. This would help establish whether the bacteria are indeed related to or derived from the material used in the earlier experiment.

While trying the original experiment again with uncleaned dishes (Option D) could also provide insights, it is not as direct as the initial step of culturing the bacteria found. Gathering dirty Petri dishes from other labs (Option B) and checking clean dishes for residue (Option C) would not provide conclusive evidence regarding the specific bacteria in question.