Question 1

Which of the following statements best describes a microbe?

Accepted Answer

A form of life too small to be visible without the aid of a microscope.

Question 2

Which environment would most likely support the growth of thermophilic microbes?

Accepted Answer

A hot spring in Yellowstone National Park at 88°C.

Question 3

Which of the following is NOT a function of the human microbiota?

Accepted Answer

Causing all infectious diseases.

Question 4

Which statement about prokaryotes and eukaryotes is correct?

Accepted Answer

All prokaryotes are unicellular.

Question 5

Which group of microbes is NOT classified as a cell?

Accepted Answer

Viruses

Question 6

Which component is found in the cell wall of bacteria but NOT in archaea?

Accepted Answer

Peptidoglycan

Question 7

Which of the following microbes can perform photosynthesis?

Accepted Answer

All algae

Question 8

Which equation best represents the process of photosynthesis in microbes?

Accepted Answer

$$ \mathrm{6CO_2 + 6H_2O + light \rightarrow C_6H_{12}O_6$ + 6O_2} $$

Question 9

Which scientist first observed living microorganisms and reported 'animalcules'?

Accepted Answer

Anton van Leeuwenhoek

Question 10

Which of the following is a correct scientific name according to binomial nomenclature?

Accepted Answer

Streptococcus pyogenes

Question 11

Which of the following statements about viruses is TRUE?

Accepted Answer

Viruses replicate only inside host cells.

Question 12

Which scientist is credited with ending the debate on spontaneous generation using swan-neck flasks?

Accepted Answer

Louis Pasteur

Question 13

Which of the following is NOT one of Koch’s postulates?

Accepted Answer

The organism must be able to photosynthesize.

Question 14

Which equation best represents alcoholic fermentation by yeast?

Accepted Answer

$$ \mathrm{C_6H_{12}O_6$ \rightarrow 2C_2H_5OH + 2CO_2} $$

Question 15

Which scientist introduced antiseptics into surgery, reducing surgical infections?

Accepted Answer

Joseph Lister

Question 16

Which of the following best describes the concept of biogenesis?

Accepted Answer

Living cells come from preexisting living cells.

Question 17

Which of the following is a real-world example of beneficial microbial use?

Accepted Answer

Pasteurization to kill disease-causing microbes in milk.

Question 18

Which of the following is a plausible reason why bacteria from Antarctica would NOT grow well in a Rhode Island meadow?

Accepted Answer

Antarctic bacteria are adapted to cold, low-nutrient environments.

Question 19

Which of the following is a key insight from the germ theory of disease?

Accepted Answer

Diseases are caused by microbes.

Introduction to Microbiology: The Microbial World and You

Study Guide - Practice Questions