What Do Bacteria Look Like?
This here is a compound microscope. A microscope is an instrument commonly used by scientists to take a closer look at very small objects. Have you ever played with a magnifying glass? Well microscopes use the same idea by using a series of lenses, mirrors, and light to make small images look bigger.
Bacteria are very, very tiny. This is why they are considered microbes. Most bacteria, such as E. coli, are around 2 micrometers. Imagine a meter stick. It would take 1,000,000 micrometers to equal that one meter stick. This means, that if you stack 2 million E. coli cells front to back, this would equal one meter stick. That's a lot of E. coli!
To use a microscope, scientists take their specimens, or what they are interested in looking under the microscope, and mount, or stick, the bacteria onto a slide. The scientists then take the slide and places it on the stage of the microscope. They will then look through the eye piece and adjust the focus knobs and use different objective lens, or magnifications, until they are able to see a clear image of their specimen.
Let's do some activities and watch some videos to review what we just talked about here! Watch the video "How to Correctly Use a Microscope" by clicking play on the video below. Once you're finished, proceed by clicking the button "Labeling the Microscope Quiz" under Eli.
Bacteria are very, very tiny. This is why they are considered microbes. Most bacteria, such as E. coli, are around 2 micrometers. Imagine a meter stick. It would take 1,000,000 micrometers to equal that one meter stick. This means, that if you stack 2 million E. coli cells front to back, this would equal one meter stick. That's a lot of E. coli!
To use a microscope, scientists take their specimens, or what they are interested in looking under the microscope, and mount, or stick, the bacteria onto a slide. The scientists then take the slide and places it on the stage of the microscope. They will then look through the eye piece and adjust the focus knobs and use different objective lens, or magnifications, until they are able to see a clear image of their specimen.
Let's do some activities and watch some videos to review what we just talked about here! Watch the video "How to Correctly Use a Microscope" by clicking play on the video below. Once you're finished, proceed by clicking the button "Labeling the Microscope Quiz" under Eli.
Exploring the Microscope
After you have completed and passed the quiz, click on the picture of the microscope below to begin an online exploration of the microscope. When you are finished, click on the "Done" button.
Real, Live Bacteria
So what about bacteria? What do they really look like? Below are some images of bacteria as seen under a compound microscope. Hover your mouse over the pictures to see the names of the bacteria. Notice that they all are different colors, shapes, and sizes. That's because there are a variety of diverse bacteria that can be found all around us!
Can you find which picture has some of Eli's friends??
Can you find which picture has some of Eli's friends??
When you are finished, move on to the next step of our Learning Adventure by clicking the "Next Stop" button below!