the.com/bacterium
A single cell that invented farming, warfare, and photosynthesis before you existed.
means A single-celled microorganism without a nucleus, among the simplest and oldest forms of life on Earth.
from Coined in the 19th century via New Latin 'bacterium', from Greek 'baktērion', meaning 'little rod' or 'little staff' — a diminutive of 'baktēria' (rod, staff), since the first bacteria studied under early microscopes were rod-shaped. The plural 'bacteria' has since leaked into English as a singular in casual speech, much to the irritation of purists.
- age
- Older than oxygen in the atmosphere
- count
- More bacterial cells in you than human ones
- speed
- Some divide every 20 minutes, outpacing most math homework
- skill
- Trades genes sideways, skipping the whole parenting thing