Question

At a temperature of 20C the common amoeba reproduces by splitting in half every 24 hours.
if we start with a single amoeba how many will there be after (a): 8 days (b): 16 days?​

Answer 1

Answer:

As long as there are sufficient nutrients, the amoeba will grow exponentially, splitting in two every 24 hrs. The equation for exponential growth is x = P B^(t/T), where P is the initial population, B is the factor by which a single elements grow, and T is the time period.

x = 1*2^(t/24)

So a) x = 2^8 = 256 amoeba

b) x = 2^16 = 65536 amoeba