Snow Bacteria - Answers

Pseudomonas syringae - www.knowledgebank.irri.org

 

We all know (or should know) that eating dirty or yellow snow is a big “no-no”. Those of us who are parents (and live in regions where there are regular snowfalls) teach our children this lesson as quickly as possible.

Back in 2008 scientists were surprised to see a large amount of a specific bacteria in snow - even in "pristine" snow in places like Antarctica and the Yukon. Scientists discovered that there may be a relationship between ice-forming, air-borne bacteria and global rainfall patterns. For those of you who don’t know, the formation of ice in clouds is required for snow and most rainfall. Although dust and soot particles serve as ice formation particles, bacteria ice nuclei are capable of  freezing more quickly at much warmer temperatures. Bottom line:  Bacteria in the atmosphere may affect the processes that trigger precipitation. 

So...... here's my trivia questions:

 

 

What's the bacteria discovered that is so common in snow?
A) Plant bacteria
B) Ocean bacteria
C) Urine bacteria

 

Answer - A  Plant bacteria. Pseudomonas syringae causes diseases on various plants. It also produces proteins which cause water to freeze at fairly high temperatures, resulting in injury to plants. Since the 1970s, P. syringae has been implicated as an atmospheric "biological ice nucleator". Recent evidence has suggested that the species plays a larger role than previously thought in producing rain and snow. 

And now the most important question - how much snow can you safely eat?
A) Don't eat any
B) A little won't hurt
C) You can consume a lot

Answer - B  C'mon - you can eat snow!

Next blog - Next week