A scientist wants to determine the biomass of the bacterial populations in his experiment using a spectrophotometer. He finds that population A has a higher turbidity than population B. What does this tell us about the bacterial populations?

• A. More light was able to pass through population B than population A.
• B. The liquid population A is being grown in is more cloudy than the liquid population B is being grown in.
• C. Population A has more biomass than population B.
• D. All of the above.

Answer: (D)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Understand the concept of turbidity: Turbidity is a measure of how cloudy a liquid is, which is often used to estimate the biomass of bacterial populations. Higher turbidity indicates more particles or cells in the liquid, leading to less light passing through.
2. Relate turbidity to biomass: In microbiology, turbidity is directly related to the biomass of bacterial populations. A higher turbidity means there are more bacterial cells present, thus a higher biomass.
3. Analyze the spectrophotometer readings: A spectrophotometer measures the amount of light that passes through a sample. If population A has higher turbidity, it means less light passes through compared to population B.
4. Compare the cloudiness of the liquids: Since population A has higher turbidity, the liquid it is grown in is more cloudy than the liquid for population B.
5. Conclude based on observations: Given that population A has higher turbidity, it can be concluded that population A has more biomass than population B, and all the statements provided are correct.