Try it on paper first. A hint, the key idea and the worked solution are here when you need them.
A dish holds bacteria. Each bacterium divides into two every minutes, and none dies. How many bacteria are there after hours? After how many divisions are there first more than ?
Growth is an increase in mass and in the number of cells. A living thing grows from inside, by cell division; a non-living thing grows only by material added on its outside. Plants grow all their life, animals up to a certain age. In a one-celled organism, growth and reproduction are one event: after divisions, one cell gives .
Have you tried it?
Work it out on paper first. It is fine to get stuck or make a mistake: that is how we learn. When you are ready, go through the solution one step at a time, and check each step against your own.
Step 1. Divisions in 5 hours. , and divisions.
Step 2. The number. bacteria.
Step 3. Past a million. After divisions there are , which is too few. After there are .
Answer: bacteria after hours; more than a million after divisions, that is minutes.
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