Biology 306 Microbiology Laboratory
Fall 2015
Meeting Times : Tuesday, 1:30-4:20 p.m., K216 Science Center
Instructor: Mary Teleha
Office : A131 Science Center
Phone: 775-6239
E-mail : mteleha@oberlin.edu
Office Hours: W & F 11 am-12 noon* or by appointment.
*If you drop by and I am not in my office, you may find me in K216 or K211. For scheduled appointments, please come to A131.
Course Materials: There is no required lab manual to purchase for this lab. Your textbook will serve as a great reference for information related to lab. Each week, I will post a lab handout with the background information and procedure for conducting the lab. The handout will include a textbook reference for more information on the lab topic. I will provide the handout approximately 5 days in advance. You will be expected to print out and read the handout to familiarize yourself with the information before lab begins. Please feel free to use any resource available to you to further understand lab material. This includes credible internet resources, the library, your textbook, and nearly any microbiology laboratory manual. In addition to your lab handout, please also bring the following items to lab:

Your Lab Notebook (a three-ring binder)
 with dividers to separate each week’s material
 with loose leaf paper for your notes

A fine point Sharpie
 Pen/pencil

Lab coat
Course Description: Laboratory exercises are designed to illustrate processes central to microbiology and to familiarize students with basic skills required for working with microorganisms. Topics will include maintenance of bacterial cultures, aseptic technique, microscopy, isolation and identification of unknown bacteria, and control of microbial growth.
Course Outcomes: The goals of this lab are many. First, you will carry out exercises and experiments designed to introduce you to the field of microbiology. You will learn to culture, view, isolate, characterize, and even identify microorganisms. We will use a number of methods of those available to microbiologists to achieve this goal. We will consider the interactions between ourselves and microorganisms by examining our environment, our water and food sources, and even our own bodies for their microbial inhabitants. We will study methods to visualize microbes and control microbial growth. We will use traditional techniques learned early in the semester to identify and classify unknown bacteria. It is my hope that you will find this lab interesting and fun. It is the microbiologist that truly appreciates the saying, “There’s more than meets the eye.” It is my hope that in taking this course, you will also appreciate it.

Grades: Quizzes (2 at 25 pts each) 50
Lab Exercises/Questions
Lab report
Unknowns report
Independent project plan/flow chart
Lab Notebook
Total
Independent project presentation and summary
60
20
40
5
5
20
200
Based on your procedure and technique in the lab, your overall score will be assessed at the end of the semester. Your grade is subject to up to 5% increase or decrease (10 points maximum) based on how you conduct yourself in the lab. This assessment will be a consideration of how well you follow directions and lab safety rules and procedures. Additionally, your work space should be neat and cleaned up before you leave the lab and your microscope must be properly cleaned and cared for. Lastly, cultures and experiments that you are finished with need to be disposed of properly and not left in the incubators or refrigerator. On the first day of lab, each student begins with the full 10 points, and deductions will only be made if problems consistently arise throughout the semester. Similarly, outstanding work in the lab will also be recognized.
General Notes: Most lab exercises will be carried out by pairs of students. For individual projects, this is not the case. You are free to discuss your experiments and results with your lab mates and with me, but lab reports written for individual projects must be original and in your own words, with references properly cited, in accordance with the Oberlin College Honor Code.
Please note that because we will only meet once weekly and bacterial cultures grow according to their own schedule, not ours, you will be required to stop in to the lab other days of the week to start cultures, move cultures to the refrigerator, or record results. I will announce in class when this is the case, and it will be clearly stated into your lab handout for the week. The lab will be unlocked during the day. Late in the day (after 8 pm), you can check out keys to the building and the lab from security using your Oberlin ID. However, I suggest you come in during the day to avoid any problems that might come up trying to get into the building after hours.
Make-up policy: Make-up quizzes and lab sessions will not be permitted except in the case of unexpected emergency (e.g., illness with doctor’s note, death in the family). You must attend and participate in all labs. The laboratory exercises and experiments require extensive planning and setup. For this reason, it is not possible to make up missed labs. Please contact me as soon as you become aware that you might miss a lab and I will do my best to work with you to minimize point loss. However, keep in mind that any approved make-ups might require extra preparation on your part (i.e. set up of bacterial cultures).
Classroom and Testing Accommodations: Students needing special accommodations for quizzes due to physical or learning disabilities should first contact the Office of Disability
Services (http://new.oberlin.edu/office/disability-services/). After the necessary accommodations have been determined, the student is responsible for presenting the written request for

accommodations to me at the beginning of the term. After receiving the written request, I will make every effort to meet the recommendation of the Office of Disability Services.
Honor System: All students deserve a healthy learning environment and evaluations that are based of their honest, independent efforts. Academic dishonesty violates these rights of students.
As a member of the Oberlin College community, I trust and rely on the honor system. You must be familiar with Oberlin College’s policy concerning the honor system. You can find a link to this policy at the bottom of the Blackboard site once you have logged in. I will be sure to clarify for you what is and what is not a violation of the honor system regarding assignments, quizzes, projects, and papers for this course. It is your responsibility to ask for clarification if you are unsure whether a particular action or specific type of assistance is permitted or would be an honor code violation. After completing work, you will be asked to sign a statement that reads, “I affirm that I have adhered to the honor code on this assignment.” Failure to comply with this request and the honor code may result in failure on the assignment and possibly the class.
Microbiology Lab Schedule Fall 2015

Date
9/8/15
Lab 1
9/15/15
Lab 2
9/22/15
Lab 3
9/29/15
Lab 4
10/6/15
Lab 5
10/13/15
Lab 6
10/20/15
10/27/15
Lab 7
11/3/15
Lab 8
11/10/15
Lab 9
11/17/15
Lab 10
11/24/15
12/1/15
Lab 11
12/8/15
Lab 12
Topic
Introduction
Lab Safety
Microscope
Aseptic Technique
Isolation/Pure Culture
Motility
Bacteria Smears
Simple Stains
Bacterial Metabolism II
Begin Unknowns
Continue Unknowns
Individual project
Stains of your isolate
Prepare flow chart/plan
No Lab- Happy Thanksgiving
Continue individual project
What is Due
Signed safety agreement
Drawings of 4 Microorganisms
(10 pts)
Turn in Lab 1 Microscope and safety questions (10 pts). Bring Lab coat & environment and body swabs.
Lab 2 Questions. Can turn in
9/29/15
(10 pts)
Quiz 1 (25 pts) Quiz 1 (Lab 1-2)
Differential Stains
Structural Stains
Presumptive test for coliforms
Water/Beverage/Food Microbiology
Effect of Physical Factors on Microbial Growth
Hand washing
Control of microbial growth
(Antimicrobials, Antibiotics, UV radiation)
Confirmed test for coliforms
Further characterization of your isolates
No Lab- Fall Recess
Quiz 2 (Lab 3-6)
Bacterial Metabolism I
Bring one water sample and one food/beverage sample to lab
Turn in Lab 3-4 Questions (10 pts)
Bring your favorite hand sanitizer to lab
Quiz 2 (25 pts)
Turn in questions from Labs 5 and
6. (10 pts)
Lab Report 1 on Lab 6 exercises due
(20 pts) by 3 p.m. 11/6/15 .
Requirements discussed in Lab 6.
Turn in Bacterial metabolism questions
(10 pts)
Submit flow chart/plan for your isolate (5 pts)
Lab notebook check (5 pts)
Unknowns lab report due (40 pts)
Presentation/Discussion
Identification/characterization of your Isolate
(20 pts)