Questions for microbial ecology What is Microbial Ecology and What do microbial ecologists study? What is a microevironment? Describe biofilms and their functions and significance in practical applications. What are the factors affecting microbial ecology? List methods commonly used to study microbial ecology. What is the Winogradsky column and the bacteria enrichment technique? What is the Winogradsky column used for? Schematically draw it. How to carry out isolation of anaerobic bacteria in pure culture? How to do Identification and Quantificationof environmental microorganisms using Nucleic Acid Probes, Fluorescent Antibodies, and Viable Counts? How to do the Measurements of Microbial Activity in Nature using radioisotope technique and microelectrodes? What Stable Isotopes are used in Microbial Biogeochemistry? How to decide the biogenic or abiogenic of a material? What are aquatic habitats and primary producers? How do they distribute in nature? What is Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD)? How are microbial activities looked like in various layers of soil? What are the conditions under deep sea? What microorganisms inhabit in deep sea? What makes microorganisms under deep sea so unique compared with normal microbes? Why can tube worms live under deep sea where little organic nutrients are available? List microorganisms you have known that tend to live in hydrothermal vents? Schematically describe carbon and oxygen cycles. What microorganisms are involved in C and O cycles? How is methane produced from complex organic materials via microbial activities? What are primary and secondary fermenters in methane production? List two syntrophic microorganisms and describe a bit. How ruminants digest cellulose and starch? Schematically describe nitrogen and sulfur cycles and microorganisms involved. What bacteria is best understood in Bacterial iron reduction and oxidation. Describe the microbial leaching process for recovering copper from CuS. Why some microorganisms are resistant to mercury? Microorganisms are sometime used for cleaning of environmental pollutions, such as petroleum and pesticides? What is lichen and mycorrhiza? How is Ti-plasmid transfer T-DNA from Agrobacterium to plant genome? Why is Root nodule bacteria and symbiosis so important for legumes?