Yesterday we did our first Tetrahymena experiment by feeding them India Ink particles to observe food vacuole formation over a period of time.  Today we analyzed the data and brainstormed other ways to test food vacuole formation.

Today we were introduced to the protist Teterahymena
, which we will be working with over the next week and a half on labs developed by Cornell University. They are approximately 100 microns long. The scanning electron micrograph above shows the ciliate in pursuit of an E. coli dinner.

Mid-Term Exam on FRI! Don't sweat though. Review your old notes and tests and flip through this groovy slideshow:

Midtermreview

View more presentations from Chad DeVoe.

Great skits today! Check out the Xtranormal movies below too

Wyatt and Tristan show off their bacteria cultures. Today's conclusion: the dirtiest places were phones, drinking fountains, and of course, Mr. DeVoe's keyboard. The cleanest: inside of the toilets!

Today we took potential bacterial samples from around the class and school.  Above, the girls try to see how dirty my keyboard is!  Lets hope the results turn out OK!

Lexi finishes up her sample with some Parafilm before putting it into the incubator.

Viva la revolucion!

 In a democracy, people should feel safe to speak out if they do not agree with something.  An informed student's voice is a powerful thing.

I ask you...

How would you change Groton so you learn better?

UPDATE:  Meeting after school on Tuesday in Rm 302 if you are interested in sharing your ideas.

We've started bacteria and viruses in class.  This unit involves an infectious disease project where you will write the dialog to a movie.  If you wish, you may act out the scene in class or use the website http://www.xtranormal.com/ to create an animated movie.  However, you must be 13 and have an email address to sign up.