Results:

On Friday, it was determined that my Plaque Assay for Soil A turned out negative without contamination.

Non-contaminated Control Plate

The negative plaque assay

Rationale:

Collect a new sample of soil, as well as come up with our scientific question

Scientific Question:

Each table section came up with their own question, and ours is, “Is there a difference in Arthrobacterphage in live oak trees at Baylor versus planted trees in developed areas?”

Procedure:

Our table groups (Groups 3 &4) came up with our scientific question, and then went out to collect soil (In a 15-mL vial and bag). My group (Group 4) was tasked with gathering soil from planted trees, so we went to Teal Residential College and looked at trees there. My tree is on the northern side, and closer to the building than the rest of the trees. I gathered soil two feet from the base of the tree, as well as took leaf samples for identification.

Observations:

• My tree is not an oak tree, and I have yet to find out the specific type it is (I will have to look through a tree category book)
• Although my tree had lots of brown leaves on it, most of it looked healthy and green
• While digging through the soil, I found a grub of some sort

Next Steps:

We will be washing and filtering my soil on Monday, and will be creating a direct and enriched lysate