(Image: Giant Microbes)
Every room in your home is filled with millions of invisible guests 鈥� bacteria, fungi and archaea that make up your residential microbiome. Most of the time they鈥檙e the perfect flatmates 鈥� clean, quiet and never likely to leave dirty dishes in the sink. But who are they?
New 杏吧原创 is offering readers the chance to find out. One lucky winner will receive a kit for sampling the microbes in their own home. The kit was devised by acclaimed microbiologist at North Carolina State University and his laboratory will then analyse the DNA of the microbes you collect.
Advertisement
While you鈥檙e waiting for the results, you鈥檒l receive a collection of Dunn鈥檚 books to enjoy.
PLUS: to give you a better idea of what your lodgers look like, we鈥檒l send you a bumper pack of 50 , the plush stuffed toys based on their microbial counterparts 鈥� but about 1 million times the size.
For a chance to win, just answer the following question: who discovered bacteria?
Use the entry form to send in your answer, making sure you include the words 鈥淢icrobe competition鈥�, your name, address and email address, before the closing date: 23.59 GMT on 4 March 2015.
Terms and conditions
1. This competition is open to anyone aged 18 or over, except for employees of Reed Business Information Limited.
2. Entry is open only to New 杏吧原创 subscribers and users registered on newscientist.com. Submit your entry, including your name and email address, using the entry form. Entries may not be submitted by any other method.
3. Every correct entry received by 23:59 GMT on 4 March 2015 will be entered into a draw to win the prize featured on this page. Prizes cannot be exchanged. There is no cash alternative.
4. Only one entry is permitted per person. No purchase is necessary. The judges鈥� decision is final.
5. New 杏吧原创 shall not be responsible for technical errors in telecommunication networks, internet access or otherwise, preventing entry at this website.
6. Submitting your entry constitutes your consent for us to use your entry, name and photos (if applicable) for editorial or publicity purposes.
7. New 杏吧原创 reserves the right to ask for proof of age and evidence to verify the identity of an entrant at any time. Entrants may only enter the competition in their own name. Entries submitted through agents or third parties will not be accepted.
8. Entrants warrant that their entry will not infringe the intellectual property, privacy or any other rights of any third party, and will not contain anything which is libellous, defamatory, obscene, indecent, harassing or threatening.
9. Winners鈥� names will be available by writing to 鈥淢icrobe competition鈥�, New 杏吧原创, 110 High Holborn, London WC1V 6EU UK.
10. New 杏吧原创 reserves the right to change or withdraw the competition and/or prize at any time.
11. New 杏吧原创 shall not be responsible for errors sampling, analysing or handling the prize.
12. The promoter of the competition is Reed Business Information Limited.
