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Biology Experiment: Control Growth of Mold on Bread
by Ron Kurtus (updated 21 November 2022)
You may have noticed some mold growing on a piece of bread that has been in the refrigerator or in the package for a long time. This may get you curious as to the reasons causing that mold to grow, as well as how to prevent that growth.
Examining mold on bread can be an idea for a science project in the area of biology. Take some bread and expose pieces to different conditions to determine what is the most influential on the growth of mold. Then minimize those conditions to verify that the growth of mold can be stopped or at least diminished.
Questions you may have include:
- What is the purpose of the experiment?
- What research must be done?
- What is the experiment?
This lesson will answer those questions.
Purpose of experiment
The purpose of the experiment is to study factors involved in bread getting moldy in order to find a solution to this problem.
Do not make a guess of the solution, since that may bias your results.
Research and factors
Do research on bread and mold to determine possible factors involved in bread getting moldy. List the information and your resources in your log book.
Possible factors include:
- Humidity
- Temperature
- Type of bread
- Light
- Access to air (versus air-tight container)
Experiment
Pick one factor to vary, keeping everything else constant. For example, you could see how the amount of light affects the growth of mold.
Keep records
If this is going to be an experiment for a science fair, you will need to record your activities in a log book.
Draw conclusions
You can draw conclusions on the effect of one factor has on the growth of mold and show how using this result will reduce the growth. Or you can vary several factors, one at a time to see which one has the most influence.
Write report
Write up a report to summarize your results and your proposed solution to the problem.
Summary
You can satisfy your curiosity about mold growing on bread with an experiment. Take some bread and expose pieces to different conditions to determine what is the most influential on the growth of mold. Then minimize those conditions to verify that the growth of mold can be stopped or at least diminished.
Don't get stuck with moldy ideas
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Biology Experiment: Control Growth of Mold on Bread