For billions of years before the frst complex animals swam the seas, Microscopic

organisms existed as the only form of life on our planet. We owe our evolution, and the
balance of nature to the organisms whos signifcance is much more then there size
might suggest. Thou scientifc document of microbiology is fairly new, microorganisms
have been utilized by humans for thousands of years for brewing, baking, gardening,
and through disease have enticed a need for medicine and sanitary practices that have
resulted in a rise in average human life span. Egyptians and Romans were keen to the
idea that invisible organisms caused disease but these ideas died with the dark ages.
Antoni va Leeuwenhoek (1632-1723) a dutch cloths merchant and expert lens grinder,
visualized and idea of micro organisms during a time when most still believed complex
organisms could arise spontaneously from organic matter. It wasnt until 1861 that
esteemed scientist louis pasteur disproved spontaneous generation by demonstrating
the presence of microorganisms in the air then showing nothing arose in a sterile liquid
in a swan-necked fask witch all elements of spontaneous generation were present. A
brief interpretation of microbiology can be summed up into three parts (Variety, Life
Cycle, Habitat), and then expanded upon to fnd the topics place within a model for a
sustainable eco community.
The classifcation of microbiological life can be broken two ways, prokaryotes and
eukaryotes, the vital diference being that prokaryotes lack a nuclear membrane and
membrane bound organelles. Prokaryotes are less diverse in there spread across the
kingdoms and are made up by the domain bacteria, cyanobacteria (blue-green algae),
and archaea. Domain archaea has only recently been spliced of being considered a
bacteria, yet classifcation is difcult because of lack of scientifc study. Arecaea were
frst classifed in 1977 by Carl Worse and George E. Fox based on sequences of rRNS
genes. Domain bacteria Make of the majority of prokaryotic diversity, being among the
frst life forms on earth bacteria and is found everywhere from deep portions of the
earths crust, to human lead space expeditions. The main diference between bacteria
and cyanobacteria is the presence of chlorophyll compared to bacterias heterotrophic
mode of life. Domain eukaryote contains the the remaining known types of micro
organisms and every other animal, insect, plant, and fungus visible to the naked eye.
The multicellular micro organisms of the eukaryote domain consist of protozoa, greens
algae, certain fungus species and micro-animals like spider mites and nematodes.
Viruses are neither prokaryotic or eukaryotic since they arent considered living in the
true sense do to their need for a hosts DNA for reproduction. Viruses are not alien, they
belong to the same life web as everything else on this planet, and theyre impact on
humans and health creates a need for consideration. It is not enough to name the types
of microorganisms and expect to understand their place in a sustainable society, an in
depth working knowledge of the biology and life cycles needs to be understood to defne
ties between the micro and macro life forms.
Thou a thorough working knowledge of the biology of our eight defned types of
micro organisms would be impossible to condense into this paper, we can still touch
upon the basic structure, reproduction, input needs, and bi products to illustrate
microorganisms place in nature and develop a working knowledge of micro organisms in
self sustained eco communities. Bacteria are single celled organisms that lack
chlorophyll and depend on the substances that they live in to absorb as food. Bacteria
consist of prokaryotic cells meaning they dont have a nucleus, and the genetic material
is contained, instead, within a single circular chain of DNA. Bacteria reproduce by
fssion, by which a cell divides to produce 2 new cells. Moisture, mineral compositions,
temperature, and ph are all variables that efect the growth and health of bacterias.
Cyanobacteria were once known as blue-green algae but have been found to be
prokaryotic and structurally resemble bacteria. Unlike most bacteria, cyanobacteria
conducts oxygenic photosynthesis to produce food. Cyanobacteria have been living on
this plant for the past 2.5 billion years making them the oldest oxygenic
photosynthesizing organism, responsible for the large concentrations of oxygen in the
atmosphere. The similarities between the relations of cyanobacteria and bacteria and
the relations of plants and animals apparent and abstract. The diference between
archaea and bacteria seems to be difcult to understand without extensive knowledge of
rRNA sequences, and phylogenetics. One interesting thing about archaea is that they
can survive extremes environments, the have been found at boiling hydrothermal vents,
and and in the depths of frozen deserts.
Out of all the eukaryotic kingdoms, protista is the broadest and most controversial
The Island of Misft Eukaryotes Protista are a kingdom of simple eukaryotic organisms,
composed of a single cell or a colony of similar cells. Other eukaryote kingdoms or
monophyletic meaning that the kingdom has come from one parent species. Kingdom
protista on the other hand is polyphyletic and is composed of miscellaneous eukaryotes,
not closely related to each other, but not ftting any other kingdom. Some feel kingdom
protista should be discarded and divided into as many as twelve kingdoms. Basal
Protista are the most primitive of the protista. some lack mitochondria and give us
insight to what the frst eukaryotes may have been like. Basal Protista includes
Trichomonad, Giardia, Entamoeba, and some common terrestrial slime molds.
Alveolates are named for there fattened sacs beneath their plasma membrane called
alveoli. Alveolates include Dinofagellates, Paramecium, and Apicomplexa.
Stramenopiles includes water molds, golden and brown algae, and diatoms. Oomycetes,
fungus like water molds, feed on living or decaying organisms, and include such row
crop pests as potato blight, downy mildew, and white rust. the golden and brown algae
of the stramenopiles make up for many common sea weeds such as kelp, a gigantic
marine brown algae. Red algae include most seaweeds and are most abundant in
tropical seas. Coral reefs are made not just by coral but also from calcium deposits from
coralline red algae. Food additives such as agar and carrageenan are a product of red
algae, and used to stabilize desserts, dressings, toothpastes, paints, and cosmetics.
Green Algae include single celled chlamydomonas, chlorella, and large seaweeds such
as codium magnum. Kingdom fungis micro organism yeast has been throughout
modern human history for the leavening of bread and the brewing of alcohol. Its lives in
colonies living of sugars, and producing alcohol and co2 as waste products.
Microscopic animals include spider mites, and nematodes. Nematodes live in the soil
and the management of them make up an important aspect of organic farming. certain
microscopic green algae such as charophyta are considered part of the plant kingdom
classifed with embryophyta plants.
now that a very basic working knowledge of internal workings of micro organisms
has been made, it is just as important to illustrate its symbiosis with its external
environment. Studying the habitats of microorganisms and there interactions with it, is
where we fnd room to design micro organisms into our sustainable communities, from
growing yeast cultures from baking and brewing, to the management of micro organisms
in the soil, and applications in medicine, organic chemistry, and bio remediation. micro
organisms are where you fnd the hardiest of species like the micro animal the
tardigrade which can live frozen in ice, in boiling water and even in the vacuum of space
for a period of time. It is no wonder the adaptable tardigrades have lived through every
mass extinction. So its seems there is no where on earth you can fnd void of micro
organisms, and it can be hard to determine habitats for broad groups of
microorganisms. Bacteria for example can be found every ware from in the air we
breathe, the water we drink, and every ware throughout our bodies and environments.
When considering micro organisms in human settlement models the habitat needs to be
addresses frst and then examined for microbiological life and their efects. The three
fuids that make up our world and communities are the air, water, and earth. within
those confnes our where we fnd the balanced system that is life on earth, and when
designing our air, water, and earth systems the microboliogical life that exists within
these three fuids needs to be addressed, respected, and only intervened with if
needed for the health of the land and its inhabitants. Micro organisms produce two
thirds of the oxygen we breath, stabilize fertility of our ecosystems, and were the
precursor to the evolution of us and all the life we see everyday. If pollution from
industries and communities is throwing of balance in the microbiological world steps
need to be made to insure the problem is resolved and wastes are felt with in
environmentally concise ways.
Microorganisms have so many efects on agriculture, public heath, and our
ecosystems that great consideration needs to be taken when designing towns and
larger communities. many ties can be made between micro organisms, and agriculture,
medicine, public health, environmental safety, food processing and culinary arts, and
they need to be by the responsible parties. Ecological communities ideally would have
little to no impact on the balances of microbiological life unless proven to have eco
friendly applications with intensions on public health, safety, and economics.
Sources:
Encyclopedia of Food and Culture, 2003
Pace NR, Time for change, 2006
Woes C. Fox G. Phylogenetic structure of prokaryotes, 1977
UXL Encyclopedia of Science, 2002
Pearl, Biology, 2002
Saladin Kenneth, Biology, 2002