An increase in salinity allows for an increase in halobacteria population size. The reliability of data increases with an increase in the size of the data pool/set. To draw reliable conclusions, multiple trials/replicates should be performed.

Halobacterium are extremophiles thriving in high saline environments. An ecological disturbance in a single abiotic or biotic factor could affect an entire ecosystem. Natural events and human activities affect the Earth’s capacity to sustain biological diversity. Spectrophotometers are used to measure cell density.

The students will be introduced to two different pieces of equipment, the micropipette and the spectrophotometer. Both of these instruments will be used in a future investigation.

The students will be presented with a real life example of an event that affected the Great Salt Lake ecosystem – the building of a causeway. Based on observations of this phenomenon, students will generate hypotheses about factors affecting the growth of one prominent organism in this ecosystem, Halobacterium.

In this activity, the students will be introduced to the fascinating world of extremophiles. The students will brainstorm questions and research these unique organisms. In the following lesson, students will be presented with a real life example of an event that affected the Great Salt Lake ecosystem, the building of a causeway.