Final answer:
To find the size of the chromosome, we calculate the total number of nucleotides in the chromosome based on the replication rate and time taken. The size of the chromosome in nucleotide base pairs is 3,600,000 nucleotides.
Step-by-step explanation:
To find the size of the chromosome in nucleotide base pairs, we need to calculate the total number of nucleotides in the chromosome.
We are told that each replication complex synthesizes DNA at a rate of 1000 nucleotides per second at each fork, leading to a total of 2000 nucleotides per second. The bacterium takes 30 minutes to replicate its chromosome.
First, we convert the replication rate from nucleotides per second to nucleotides per minute: 2000 nucleotides/second x 60 seconds/minute = 120,000 nucleotides/minute.
Next, we calculate the total number of nucleotides in 30 minutes: 120,000 nucleotides/minute x 30 minutes = 3,600,000 nucleotides. Therefore, the size of the chromosome in nucleotide base pairs is 3,600,000 nucleotides.