Growth measurement of surface colonies of bacteria using augmented reality

ABSTRACT

The provision of hands-on wet lab training for students to perform micro-organism proliferation experiments is useful for experiential skills development. However, the risk of laboratory-acquired infections arising from inadvertent ingestion, inhalation or skin penetration of these micro-organisms presents a safety concern. To obviate this risk, an augmented reality exercise requiring only a tablet/smartphone, and a petri dish with appropriate markers, was devised to allow students to study Escherichia coli colony growth on agar plates. Positive responses were obtained from a pilot study conducted with high school and undergraduate students on its use.

KEYWORDS:

• Augmented reality
• bacteria
• E. coli
• agar
• petri dish

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.