Evolution At Warp Speed

This activity explores an image of the MEGA-Plate experiment, which serves as a phenomenon for learning about antibiotic resistance and evolution by natural selection.

Antibiotics are chemicals that kill bacteria or stop them from growing. But over time, populations of bacteria can evolve resistance to antibiotics, which means that the antibiotics will no longer work against them. To study how bacteria evolve resistance, scientists set up an experiment called the MEGA-Plate — a large bacterial growth plate divided into sections with different amounts of antibiotics. This image shows the MEGA-Plate from above after 11 days. E. coli bacteria appear as white on the black background.

The “Educator Materials” document includes background information and implementation suggestions for using the image as a phenomenon. The “Student Handout” includes the image and background information.