Alex Chattwood, shown with a lichen moustache, which is a combination of fungus and bacteria.
For a critter with no brain or organs, slime mold is capable of some pretty astonishing things. Most of the time they invisibly hunt bacteria in the soil. But when food runs out single cells stream together into a slimy multicellular mass.
Alex Chattwood, former UBC scientist and current Education Manager of the Geneskool outreach program at Genome BC, will take you on an interactive tour into the world of slime molds. Alex will use live demonstrations to illustrate how his favourite slime mold, Dictyostelium discoideum, goes from a solitary to social existence and explain how researchers use it to explore questions related to human biology.
Included with museum admission or membership.
Museum members: Come early to get a sneak peek at our newest Beaty Box!