Teen Health Course 2

Introduction
Pathogens, also known as microbes, are tiny creatures that are too small to be seen by the unaided eye. Microbes come in many varieties. They may live as individuals or cluster together in communities. On the Web site below you will learn about record-breaking microbes – the biggest, smallest, oldest and even the deadliest of all.

Link to explore: Stalking the Mysterious Microbe: http://www.microbe.org/microbes/record_holders.asp

Instructions

• Start at the Stalking the Mysterious Microbe Web site.
• Click on each of the four links – biggest, smallest, oldest, and deadliest – and read about the microbes described there. Take notes as you go.
• When you are done answer the questions below.
• Finally, using the information from the links, create a microbe quiz that you can use to test how much your classmates know about microbes.

1.			What are the largest viruses and what do they look like?
2.			Why aren’t nanobes officially recognized as the smallest microbes of all?
3.			What is the oldest microbe, how old is it, and where was it discovered?
4.			What is the deadliest microbe of all, and how many people has it killed?
5.			Why isn’t Ebola virus the deadliest microbe of all time?