Bill Harzia's Small Stories - Bill Harzia's Small Stories

E. Coli (aka ‘The Masked Amoeba’)

Occupation: Single-celled superhero.

Home: Presently inside Max, a 10-year-old boy – but could move to another human should life get too stressful in there!

Best friend: His alter-ego, ‘The Masked Amoeba’.

Likes: Posing and pretending to be heroic.

Dislikes: Actually having to be heroic.

Most likely to say: “Unhand that microbe!”

Not likely to say: “With great power comes great responsibility.”

But is he a good friend? If you like someone who’s a total liability and completely helpless, then ‘Yes’! This is one superhero who’s certainly a lot less than ‘super’, and perhaps more trouble than he’s worth.

OK, so where does E. Coli get his name from?

Escherichia Coli is a type of bacterium that typically lives in the lower intestine of warm-blooded animals. Most types are harmless, but some can make you very ill with serious food poisoning.

Antibiotics

Occupation: “Destroy all Germs!”; “Smash!” (Basically nasty – but not very intelligent – bullies!)

Home: Various bottles in your bathroom cabinet.

Like: Defeating Germs; generally being nasty.

Dislike: Not usually having much time to complete their mission; being tricked by the smarter Germs. (In other words Bill!)

Most likely to say: “Destroy all Germs!”; “Not so fast. I gotta think about this…”

Not likely to say: “Go and enjoy yourselves – don’t let me stop you."

When the Germs prove too big a handful for the Antibodies and the White Blood Cells they send for an Antibiotic. Antibiotics are man-made Germ destroyers and come in all shapes and sizes – none of them very nice! Once inside the body they behave like a heat-seeking missile, and don’t give up until they’ve completed their mission. These are scary dudes!

OK, so what are Antibiotics?

An antibiotic is a substance that stops micro-organisms growing and multiplying. The best-known antibiotic is penicillin, which was first discovered by Alexander Fleming in 1928, although it wasn’t until 1945 that chemists began to sell it to the public to control infections.

The Protozoans

Occupation: Masters of the micro-universe.

Home: Anywhere they like!

Best friend: What’s a ‘friend’?

Like: Beating ‘inferior’ organisms.

Dislike: Being tricked by ‘inferior’ organisms; not getting their own way.

Most likely to say: “We are your masters now!”

Not likely to say: “I do beg your pardon – please be my guest.”

But are they good friends? Are you kidding?! Protozoans are the ‘master race’ in the micro-universe, the peak of evolution. Or that’s how they see themselves. They have only one purpose in life – and that’s to rule over everyone else!

OK, so what are Protozoans?

Protozoans are a very varied group of single-celled organisms. There are thought to be 30,000 species, and they live in watery habitats. They are easily seen with a microscope and can grow up to 1mm in size – very big for a single-celled creature!

Infectious Entertainment!