Optional up to 2 points of extra credit: Here we see an esti…

Optional up to 2 points of extra credit: Here we see an estimation of daily infections by SARS-CoV-2 based on wastewater data collected during the COVID pandemic, tracking the repeated waves of infection we have experienced in the U.S. 1. How is it that we are able to measure SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater, i.e., what does this tell us about infections with this virus? What is it that we are measuring in this wastewater? 2. Make a prediction based on this graph and your understanding of the ongoing COVID pandemic. Where do you think cases will go in the future? Explain your thinking – why do you think cases will behave as you predict, and what variables will contribute to that trend.

You leave two open Petri dishes out overnight in the lab: on…

You leave two open Petri dishes out overnight in the lab: one containing a complex medium like tryptic soy agar (TSA), and the other a chemically defined medium like glucose salts agar (GSA). On which do you expect more growth the next day, and why? Please briefly explain, and be sure to compare and contrast these two types of media as part of your answer.

You sample some surfaces using a sterile cotton swab moisten…

You sample some surfaces using a sterile cotton swab moistened with sterile water, and streak the swab onto the surface of two different types of media: one Petri dish containing the complex medium tryptic soy agar (TSA), and the other the chemically defined medium glucose salts agar (GSA). Following incubation, on which Petri dish do you expect more growth, and why? Please briefly explain, and be sure to compare and contrast these two types of media as part of your answer.