Bacterial Awesomeness

This is fascinating, though you wouldn't think so if you were doing it. Taking a population of bacteria, dividing it by twelve, and watching the populations develop for twenty years sounds like great fun, no?

Twenty years into it, Richard Lenski of Michigan State noticed that one group of bacteria were eating the other component of the feed they were given. The bacteria weren't supposed to be able to do that . . . their little bacteria species was identifiable, in part, from the fact that they couldn't eat that. It was just in there because it was part of the standard growth medium.

This is basically akin to cats . . . who cannot taste sweets according to various sources . . . developing a sweet tooth all of the sudden, snarfing down Reese's Pieces and ice cream (after batting the Pieces across the floor for awhile, of course).

Now as for me, I'm curious to know whether their sudden citrate-tooth . . . which other bacteria have . . . is something that might've involved some vestigial code from a common ancestor that was simply reactivated, or if this was a major change that occurred quite independently.

Either way, though, massive kudos for Lenski, and more pointing and laughing at young-Earth creationist loons.