You will need:
q Item of food (buttered bread, etc.)
q Sterile cotton swabs
q Sterile gloves
q Timer
q Prepared gelatine
q 6 sterile glass jar containers
Perform this experiment to find out whether picking up food-items within 5 seconds actually makes a difference or not.
INSTRUCTIONS
- Firstly, wear the sterile gloves. Then sterilize the glass jars and set some gelatine in each container.
- Keep a timer ready. Identify two separate grounds to test the 5 second rule.
- Drop your food-item on the first test ground, and start the timer. Wait for 4 seconds and pick up the food-item.
- Rub a cotton swab over the food-item on the side which hit the ground.
- Run the swab in a zig-zag motion across the prepared gelatine in one jar for a minute. Label the jar.
- Repeat the entire process with a fresh piece of the same food-item on another ground surface.
- Labelling 2 jars as ‘control’ run a swab on the food-item which has not been dropped on the ground, on the gelatine.
- Tightly seal all the jars. Place them in 37º Celsius.
- Record the growth of bacteria in each jar after 24 hours, 36 hours and 48 hours, 60 hours and 72 hours.
RESULT
While the transfer of germs does take place in less than 5 seconds, what matters is the surface. Halls, laboratories and even hospital floors surprisingly will yield very few germs. But carpets and damp floor show a much larger growth of bacteria. The type of food also makes a difference. Items with abrasive surfaces (cookies) have lesser transfer of germs, whereas items like gum, ice-cream and even vegetables will show a greater transfer of germs.
