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Does Water Fountains Affect The Spread Of Toilet In Schools?

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Science 9 Research Project: Water Fountains Vs. Toilets

Schools are one of the germiest places in the U.S., as well as all over the world. Diseases such as colds, influenza, pink eye and others spread rapidly in warm, moist conditions, which is why they thrive in schools. Kids touch just about everything and don’t know much about hygiene, and don’t clean their hands properly, which further causes the spread of these nasty germs and bacteria. This problem has been going on for a long time, and it is a battle that will continue to be fought. Among the germiest hotspots in schools is water fountains. Kids touch the button and drink the water, which comes from a spout that is covered in germs because of kids that suck or touch the spout with …show more content…

Deadly viruses, such as Norovirus, spread this way. Germs can kill and make people extremely sick. When people get sick, many take days off and miss school or work. This way, they are missing out on valuable learning opportunities, especially with the block schedule that Poynette and many other schools have. Despite cleaning and disinfecting, people still spread germs and still die from bacteria. The reason we are doing this experiment is to find out where the germiest spot in the school is and what areas will benefit from the most extra cleaning.
Many, many viruses and bacteria are spread by touch. For example, if someone sneezes into their hand and then uses a door handle without washing or sanitizing their hands, they could transfer some of the deadly bacteria they have on their hand onto the door handle, …show more content…

You will need 11.5 grams of Nutrient Agar mix, a flask, a stir bar, a hot plate, a polystyrene partitian sterile petri plate, and 500 mls of distilled water. You now have to combine the agar mix and the 500 mls of distilled water and mix together. Put the agar into the 500 mls of distilled water and make sure the stir bar is in the flask. Put this mix on the hot plate and bring to a boil. Make sure the agar mix is dissolved before removing from the hot plate. After pouring into the plates, close the lids on them to prevent condensation. Also important is to use plates within one day of making agar. Make sure to label the plates properly(name, date, swabbing area). What is especially important during swabbing is to use sterile cotton Q-tips and to make sure they are not contaminated. To do this, you should not touch the tip of the swab or put it in contact with anything besides the area being tested. This general rule should also apply to the plates. To swab, after collecting the sample, gently roll the tip of the swab against the agar in a zig- zag type motion, making large patterns. This will help you to achieve better colony growth. Make sure to place the lid back on the plates. After swabbing, place petri plates in 37 degree celsius incubator and let stand for 4 days, then record data. When collecting data, make sure to use qualitative and quantitative

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