Say for example you press your finger hard against something, desk, laptop or phone would that pressure “smoosh” the bacteria or any other microscopic organisms?
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Yes, but not with your finger, or any other soft or porous surface.
Everyday objects are not smooth on those scales. You’d need a very non-porous surface like polished metal to actually apply much pressure to something that small in the first place (otherwise you’d just squish it into whatever tiny dents exist in the material), and contact that tight between two surfaces starts to result in some weird behavior (like the fact that now you’re compressing the hell out of a very thin layer of air between them). Flesh, wood, fabric, or other organic materials won’t do; you need polished metal or glass.
Even then, cells are just sacks of water for the most part, and water is very hard to compress, so the “squishing” here is breaking the cell wall, not squishing it flat. Imagine taking a water balloon and diving underwater in a pool and trying to pop it by squishing it. It’s not *impossible*, but it’s pretty hard to do. So you need to be applying pressure pretty straight down and not have any gaps the bacterium can slide into.
That said, very hard, smooth surfaces can do it, especially for the larger bacteria. It’s quite possible to squash a large cell like an amoeba (not a bacterium, but still) between the glass plates when trying to view it under a microscope, for example. But most bacteria are so small that you need an extremely smooth surface to do it, because the irregularities even in glass or metal start being roughly the same size as the bacteria!
Yes, but not with your finger, or any other soft or porous surface.
Everyday objects are not smooth on those scales. You’d need a very non-porous surface like polished metal to actually apply much pressure to something that small in the first place (otherwise you’d just squish it into whatever tiny dents exist in the material), and contact that tight between two surfaces starts to result in some weird behavior (like the fact that now you’re compressing the hell out of a very thin layer of air between them). Flesh, wood, fabric, or other organic materials won’t do; you need polished metal or glass.
Even then, cells are just sacks of water for the most part, and water is very hard to compress, so the “squishing” here is breaking the cell wall, not squishing it flat. Imagine taking a water balloon and diving underwater in a pool and trying to pop it by squishing it. It’s not *impossible*, but it’s pretty hard to do. So you need to be applying pressure pretty straight down and not have any gaps the bacterium can slide into.
That said, very hard, smooth surfaces can do it, especially for the larger bacteria. It’s quite possible to squash a large cell like an amoeba (not a bacterium, but still) between the glass plates when trying to view it under a microscope, for example. But most bacteria are so small that you need an extremely smooth surface to do it, because the irregularities even in glass or metal start being roughly the same size as the bacteria!
Yes. I’m not sure if a finger will do it, but you can definitely smoosh. One of the ways you break open cells in the lab is by using a machine called a french press that’s basically a power smoosher. It pushes the bacteria down through a tiny hole under pressure and they pop.
Yes. I’m not sure if a finger will do it, but you can definitely smoosh. One of the ways you break open cells in the lab is by using a machine called a french press that’s basically a power smoosher. It pushes the bacteria down through a tiny hole under pressure and they pop.
OK here we go.
Imagine you have a tiny, squishy toy. When you press your fingger hard against something, like a desk or a phone, it’s like you’re squishing the tiny toy between your finger and the object.
Now, think about bacteria and other microscopic organisms as even tinier, squishier toys. When you press your finger hard against an object, you might squish some of them, but not all. Some of these tiny “toys” can be tough, and they might just wiggle around and survive the squish. So, pressing hard might smoosh some bacteria or tiny organisms, but not all of them. That’s why we need to wash our hands and clean surfaces to get rid of them!
OK here we go.
Imagine you have a tiny, squishy toy. When you press your fingger hard against something, like a desk or a phone, it’s like you’re squishing the tiny toy between your finger and the object.
Now, think about bacteria and other microscopic organisms as even tinier, squishier toys. When you press your finger hard against an object, you might squish some of them, but not all. Some of these tiny “toys” can be tough, and they might just wiggle around and survive the squish. So, pressing hard might smoosh some bacteria or tiny organisms, but not all of them. That’s why we need to wash our hands and clean surfaces to get rid of them!
Yes. High pressure sterilization is used for food, since it has a minimal effect on flavor. I think McDonald’s uses that process. (It’s why their food dries instead of spoiling)
The food item is put in a pressure chamber and put under high air pressure. The microbes are all destroyed.
Yes. High pressure sterilization is used for food, since it has a minimal effect on flavor. I think McDonald’s uses that process. (It’s why their food dries instead of spoiling)
The food item is put in a pressure chamber and put under high air pressure. The microbes are all destroyed.
The most common device used for sterilization is caused an autoclave. It accomplishes the destruction of microorganisms and their spores by bringing them to a certain pressure and temperature.
You can kill germs by heating them up. You can also kill microbes with pressure. An autoclave uses both for precision and accuracy to insure complete destruction.
So, can you smoosh bacteria. The easiest way is with pressure in a chamber like an autoclave.
The most common device used for sterilization is caused an autoclave. It accomplishes the destruction of microorganisms and their spores by bringing them to a certain pressure and temperature.
You can kill germs by heating them up. You can also kill microbes with pressure. An autoclave uses both for precision and accuracy to insure complete destruction.
So, can you smoosh bacteria. The easiest way is with pressure in a chamber like an autoclave.
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