I always hold my breath when any dish or vial is open. Anyway, does the flame really help to reduce contamination?
【在 I*****y 的大作中提到】 : the biggest contamination source is your breath. Without flame nearby, you : better hold your breath while you work on the bacteria.
depends on how clean your lab is. don't not do the work under any ventilation. otherwise, without the burner it is OK, especially when you use media or plates containing antibiotics.