title: Culture media and Chaos theory--predicting the unpredictable.
abstract: Undefined culture media have played a major role in diagnostic microbiology for 100 years. Chaos theory explains why increased knowledge of microbial systems has failed to predict defined nutritional requirements for the isolation of organisms. A brief description of Chaos theory is given and three microbiological areas of unpredictability are discussed: uncertain identity of isolates, unknown stress damage, unexplored variation of individual colony populations. Probably all living biological systems are non-linear, complex interactions and operate within Chaos theory.
authors.affiliation: Unipath Ltd., Basingstoke, Hampshire, UK.
authors.forename: E Y
authors.initials: EY
authors.lastname: Bridson
mesh_terms: D003470:Culture Media; D008829:Microbiology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017711:Nonlinear Dynamics
chemical_list: D003470:Culture Media