Johnny on the Spot

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I don't know how many of you have met our fellow STEM student Johnathan, but he is the tall guy with glasses. He's kinda funny, very nice, and super smart. I was chatting with him one day and realized that he was a mathematical genius. Which was convenient because I had a mathematical predicament. I was trying to calculate a growth curve for three species of Lactobacilli. However, after collecting some preliminary data and calculating a few estimations, I realized that I would miss an important change in my bacteria.

Unlike E. coli, Lactobacilli take much longer than 10 hours to complete their growth cycle. After asking to stay after hours, I was informed that the lab had not been Rolanda proofed, so I couldn't stay pass 5:00 pm. Facing this conundrum, I decided to consult with Phoenix college's brain trust- Matt and Josh.

They came up with the idea of monitoring carbon dioxide levels during the period when I wasn't there. Then I could use the data to extrapolate the missing part of the growth curve. Unfortunately, only one of the 3 species, Lactobacillus acidophilus emitted carbon dioxide. Lactobacillus plantarum and Lactobacillus casei did not emit sufficient levels of carbon dioxide that could be detected by the monitor.

See part II for the conclusion.


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