fruit+mold

toc Fruit Mold
 * Title **

Problem Scenario
In this expirement, I want to know on how the type of fruit (orange, apple, kiwi, and banana) will affect what fraction of each fruit the mold will cover.

Broad Question
How does the type of fruit affect how much mold will grow on them?

Specific Question
How does different types of fruits affect the amount of mold that grows on each fruit?

Hypothesis
I hypothesize that when I grow the mold on the fruit, the mold will grow a lot more on the kiwi and orange than the apple and banana. Mold grows well on acid, and the orange and kiwi are packed with the acid. Since the banana and apple don't have as much acid as the other fruits, I hypothesize that they will grow the least amount of mold.

Vocabulary List That Needs Explanation
Mold- Any fungus of the family "Mucoraceae" that forms a black, furry coating on foodstuffs. Growth- The act or process of development, gradual increase. Tupperware- A range of plastic containers used for storing food. Fruit- Any product of plant growth useful to humans or animals.

General Plan
For this experiment, I will first gather all of my materials first. After I buy all the materials and have everything I need, I will start my experiment. I'll put each cut up fruit in its own separate tupperware container, but before I put the lid on I'll sprinkle a little water on the fruit. After that, I will close the lids tightly, and place the containers in a dark, warm place (my kitchen cupboard). Every day, for ten days around 5:00pm, I will record observations on the mold growth on each fruit. On the tenth day I will take my final observations, then I will determine what fruit grew the most mold. After I finish the experiment, I will finish my wiki, then my presentation board, and prepare for the upcoming Science fair on March 29th.

Potential Problems And Solutions
If somebody accidentally knocks over the container the mold is in, then the molecules that are forming mold in the container will get bumped around and slow down the process. To prevent this from happening, I will put my project in a safe place where no one accidentally knock it down.

Safety Or Environmental Concerns
I will put in a place where my dog wont accidentally knock it down and eat it, since that would be very bad for his health. I will also not put it outside (on my porch) in the cold, where my project could possibly freeze overnight.

Number Of Comparison Categories:
I will be comparing four different fruits; an apple, kiwi, orange, and a banana.

Number of Comparison Samples:
There is one of each fruit.

Number Of Observation In Each Sample:
I will take ten observations (each observation is measuring the growth of mold on the fruit) total for each fruit (one per day).

When data will be collected
I will begin collecting observations March 12, up to March 22, around 5:00 every night.

Where will data be collected?:
The data will be collected in the middle of my kitchen table, where I'll look through the tupperware containers to record my observations.

Resources and Budget Table
containers || 4 || Walmart || $2.49 ||
 * Item || Number needed || Where I will get this || Cost ||
 * Orange || 1 || Hannafords || $0.79 ||
 * Apple || 1 || Hannafords || $0.69 ||
 * Kiwi || 1 || Hannafords || $0.49 ||
 * Banana || 1 || Hannafords || $0.49 ||
 * Small Tupperware
 * Knife || 1 || Dollar tree || $1.00 ||
 * Cutting board || 1 || Dollar tree || $1.00 ||
 * Spoon (package) || 1 || Dollar tree || $1.00 ||
 * TOTAL: ||  ||   || $7.95 ||

Detailed Procedure
1. Buy the materials above. 2. Take one fruit (example, banana) and place it on the cutting board. 3. Cut the banana in half with the knife. 4. Take the half of the banana and place it in one small tupperware container. 5. Take the spoon and fill it halfway full of water. 6. Sprinkle the water onto the fruit, so it isnt damp, but just slightly moist. 7. Put the tupperware container cover tightly back on the tupperware. 8. Label the container with the fruit thats in it. 9. Repeat steps 2-8 with each fruit. 10. When all the fruits are in the tupperware and labeled, put them all in a dark, warm place (prefferably a cuboard) 11. Record observations every day!

Photo List
A photo of the fruits in the cabinet. A photo of each fruit on Day 1 and Day 10. The resulting photo of all the fruits together after 10 days.

Time Line
March 10- Buy the materials necessary for the experiment. March 11- Gather materials, put together experiment and start recording observations. March 11-21- Record observations for each fruit every day. March 22- Complete wiki. March 23- Start science presentation board. March 26- Finish presentation board. March 27- Work on presenting my project. March 29- Science Fair!!

Data Table

 * **Fruit** || **Orange** || **Banana** || **Apple** || **Kiwi** ||
 * **Fraction of mold on fruit** || 90% || 5% || 25% || 60% ||

Data Analysis
My data wasn't very different from what I had predicted from my hypothesis. These were the results: The orange had 90% of the fruit covered, the kiwi had 60% of the fruit covered, the banana had 5% of the fruit covered and the apple had 25% of the fruit covered. The orange grew the most mold, and the kiwi grew the second to most mold. In my hypothesis I predicted that the kiwi and orange would grow the most mold, and I was correct.

All Raw Data
**Day 1** || 0% || 0% || 0% || 0% || Graphs
 * **Fruit** || **Orange** || **Banana** || **Apple** || **Kiwi** ||
 * **Amount of mold on fruit:**
 * **Day 2** || 2% || 0% || 3% || 0% ||
 * **Day 3** || 4% || 0% || 3% || 0% ||
 * **Day 4** || 10% || 0% || 5% || 5% ||
 * **Day 5** || 20% || 0% || 7% || 10% ||
 * **Day 6** || 35% || 0% || 8% || 15% ||
 * **Day 7** || 40% || 1% || 14% || 20% ||
 * **Day 8** || 50% || 2% || 17% || 35% ||
 * **Day 9** || 70% || 4% || 22% || 47% ||
 * **Day 10** || 90% || 5% || 25% || 60% ||

Results
In my experiment I measured the amount of mold growth on each fruit. I put each fruit in its own separate container with a little bit of water, and I left it there for ten days to grow mold, taking observations every day. I had predicted in my hypothesis that since the orange and kiwi have the most acid, they would grow the most mold, and I was correct. Each fruit did grow mold, but overall the orange and kiwi grew the most. The orange had about 90% of itself covered, the only spot where there was not mold was underneath the fruit where the peeling was touching the container. The kiwi had about 60% of the fruit covered, since it only grew on the fruit surface in big spots. The apple had about 25% of the fruit covered in mold, since there were only a few large mold spots. Finally, the banana (which had the least amount of mold) had about 5% of the fruit covered, since there were just a few tiny spots on the base of the fruit. So in my expirement, my hypothesis was correct.

Conclusion
In my hypothesis, I stated that due to the high acid in the kiwi and orange, they would grow the most mold (mold grows well on acid). I had also stated that since the apple and banana were low in acid, they would grow mold but not as much as the rest of the fruits. After I finished my experiment, I realized the results were not very surprising, they were just like I predicted; the orange grew the most mold, and the kiwi grew the second to most mold. As I had guessed, because of the lack of acid in the fruits, the apple and banana grew not as much mold as the other fruits. So overall, after I had done my experement I concluded that my hypothesis was correct.

Discussion
I was very happy with my experiment. It was a fun project that I did before with bread a in fourth grade, and I was excited to do it again. It was very fun watching the progress of the mold growing on the fruit, since it is a very interesting subject. I had stated in my hypothesis that I thought the orange and kiwi would grow the most most due to the high acid in the fruit, and I was correct. The orange was the most high in acid out of all the fruits, so it had grown the most mold. The only part where white mold hadn't grown on the fruit was on the bottom, where the fruit was touching the plastic container. Over the course of ten days, the orange was completely covered in mold (other than that tiny spot). The kiwi grew the second highest amount of mold, where there were a few big circles of mold covering about 70% of the surface of the fruit. The apple had a few medium-sized spots of green mold growing around the fruit, but the mold wasn't exactly furry, it was dry and crusty.

Benefit to Community and/or Science
This experiment shows what fruits we can store longer without getting them moldy as quick. This experiment also shows that we can store apples and bananas (cut open) for a long time before they become moldy.

Background Research
====Molds can be found almost anywhere; they can grow on virtually any organic substance, as long as moisture and oxygen are present. There are molds that can grow on wood, paper, carpet, foods, and insulation. When excessive moisture accumulates in buildings or on building materials, mold growth will often occur, particularly if the moisture problem remains undiscovered or unaddressed. It is impossible to eliminate all mold and mold spores in the indoor environment. However, mold growth can be controlled indoors by controlling moisture indoors. ====

Mold is a fungi that produces tiny little particles called mold spores. There are mold spores floating around in the air everywhere, both inside our homes and outside. Weathermen refer to the mold count as an allergen. For any one with allergies or breathing difficulties, these tiny spores can trigger asthma, bronchitis and many other health issues. When these spores settle in and find their selves a nice warm, moist spot they will begin to feed and germinate, causing even bigger and deadlier health problems. The moisture that is present in our homes is the perfect breeding ground for mold to thrive and grow.

Abstract
My project was about how different types of fruits effect how much mold grows on the fruits. I had four fruits for my experiment; an apple, orange, kiwi, and banana. I hypothesized that the orange and kiwi would grow the most mold because of the high amounts of acid in each fruit. To do my experiment, I bought the four different types of fruits before I started my experiment, along with all the materials I needed. I put each fruit in a separate plastic container, and before I closed the lid I sprinkled a little water on each fruit. I had closed the lids tightly so it was air tight, then I put each container in the same kitchen cupboard, where it was dark and warm. For ten days, I would measure and take observations on the growth of the mold so far. After ten days, I finally had my results; out of all the fruits, the orange had grown the most mold. As I had predicted in my hypothesis, the orange and the kiwi had grown the most mold (the kiwi grew the second to most mold). The apple had grown the third most mold, and the banana, barely growing any mold at all, had grown the least amount of mold. I thought that like most experiments, something would go wrong and my results would be completely opposite. I was very surprised when I concluded that the orange and kiwi had grown the most mold, therefore my hypothesis was correct.