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Abstract:

Mold

The purpose of this experiment was to find where mold grows best in 4 different locations; light and hot, light and cold, dark and hot, dark and cold.  I support my hypothesis because once the first little speck of mold appears, overtime; the mold will expand out through the whole slice of bread.  I got 4 slices of bread that were labeled with locations on the bag.  I put them in my locations listed above.  I was to draw pictures every 3 days or when the first mold appeared.  Everyday, I checked the bread to see if there was any mold on the bread and if there was, I was to rate the amount of mold on my scale or find the circumference of the mold.  Well, up to day 15, there wasn’t any mold, but there was moisture in the light and hot location bag.  The best location was light and hot because it had wet bubbles on the inside of the bad and it was damp because of the light and the humidness shining on the bread.

Topic: 

In this experiment, I hope to discover the conditions that most likely cause mold to grow on bread.

Purpose:

The benefit of this experiment is to show how mold grows and expands over time in different storage places.  This information could be helpful to people so that they know where the best place to store bread or other similar foods will be so it will last the longest.  I expect to learn what color mold is in the early stages of the experiment compared to the last day of testing.  Different colors of mold will tell me that there might be more than 1 type of mold.

Testable Question: 

How do different storage conditions affect the growth rate of mold on bread?

Background Research:     

Bread mold grows when it is left out to long on the shelf. Basically, it happens when the bread ages. Mold grows best indoors when it is warm and humid areas.  Some molds are zygomycota and the most common rhizopus which is black bread mold.  Those types of mold grow best on bread. Well, rhizopus mold is black.  Well, you can look at pictures or textbooks about mold.  The poor countries that have people who live on the street take fruits and other food out of waste bins.  The fruits have bacteria and mold in the them, so the people are eating bacteria and mold.  Some molds will grow rapidly in some places and other molds will grow at a slower rate in other places. The most common molds grow on food like bread.  Black bread mold forms a cottony, soft, white growth on damp bread.  Mold grows from spores.  When a black bread spore settles on damp food, it swells up and begins to grow by producing threads.  The threads are a tangled mass called mycelium, mycelium grows in a similar way to plant roots.  

Some people eat mold like bleu cheese.  Some mold is good to eat and some is not that tasty.  True molds belong to the kingdom Fungi.  

     That will conclude my research summary of my science fair project-bread mold.

Hypothesis: 

Daily,my bread mold will keep growing once  a few days have passed.  I think that the condition will be the dark location because the bread doesn't get much sun light in dark spaces. The slowest growth of mold will probably be the crust because of the dryness in it.  I think that the light and cold because the light will dry out the moistness and the  because the bread won't be damp.

Variables:  

Independent variable-the location of bread -hot,cold,light and dark areas.

Dependent variable-the growth of mold.

Controlled variable-

The brand of bread, the plastic bag and the 4 different locations for each bread bag.

Materials:

4 plastic bags, 4 slices of bread, 1 cold spot, 1 dark spot, 1 hot spot, 1 light spot, painters mask

Procedure: 

1 Get 4 slices of bread of the same brand and same loaf.

2. Get 4 plastic bags from the same box.

3. Put the slices of bread in each plastic bag.

4. Seal the bag tight so nothing can get to the bread.

5. Place 1 bag in each of the following locations: light and cold, light and hot, dark and cold, dark and hot spots in your home.

6. Make sure that they stay in the same area.

7. Record daily your amount of mold or no mold for each spot.

8. Draw a picture every 3 days or when first mold appears.

9. Use the scale from 1-5 that I made in the data section.

 The research I found was helpful. I found that I have to put the bread in the same brand of bag if I put it in the fridge. However, I think I will put the bread in dark, cold, hot,and light spots in my home. For the dark, I'll put it in room temperature. For the light area, I'll put the bread in room temperature. Well, I will have the same type of bread from the same loaf.  I'll measure the bread mold with a ruler.   

Data:  Use the scale from 1 to 5 below to rate the amount of mold on the bread.

    1              2                    3                   4                   5

speck  Dime size         1/4 size           Half            Covered

|---------|-----------|----------|----------|

The data for rate of mold growth on bread in different conditions.

Analyzing Data and Drawing Conclusions: 

What worked in this experiment was type of bread I used.  What didn’t work well was where the locations were put.  I would change the locations.  I would put bread in the cabinet or in the fridge next time.  Also, I would change the bread to a Kaiser roll instead of regular bread.  I would add another variable like putting a liquid on the bread, so it would be a faster process.  The mold growth was long, but it was interesting that it took more than 10 days for single spots of mold.

I observed that the bread took along time for mold to appear.  My data shows that the bread must have been really fresh or maybe preservatives were put in the bread.  It took a long time for the bread to mold.  It shows that it took many days for mold to begin.  The bread must have been a fresh loaf that could have been stocked with preservatives.  

This information can be used for a person who leaves there bread in certain locations with different temperatures for any number of days.  I discovered that when bread ages it gets soft and squishy.  The crust color faded from dark brown to tan.  After 15 days of testing, the bread was like a foam pad when I pressed on it, and then it would come back to original shape. 

Application of the Results:  

The results I received were very boring and not that interesting because I didn’t get any mold at all.  All 4 locations didn’t have one speck of mold.  My data table doesn’t have a single box where it has some mold recorded.

Levaren, Maxine. Science Fair Projects for Dummies. New York: For Dummies, 2002. Print.