A bacterial cell in nutrient broth with a generation time of 15 minutes will produce 16 cells in 2 hours.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

A bacterial cell with a generation time of 15 minutes will double every 15 minutes. In 2 hours (120 minutes), there are 8 generation times (120/15 = 8). Starting with 1 cell, it will double 8 times: 1 -> 2 -> 4 -> 8 -> 16 -> 32 -> 64 -> 128 -> 256. Therefore, it will produce 256 cells, not 16.

A Bacterial Cell in Nutrient Broth with a Generation Time