Lamenda Johnson age 15, for her question:

Are viruses bacteria?

The viruses and the bacteria belong in the world of microbes, though they are not at all related to each other. The bacteria are the simplest of all plants and not one of them i s large enough to b e seen without the help of a microscope. The viruses are even more simple. Some experts believe that they are too simple to be classed as living things. They may be merely complex chemicals.

In the world of microbes, we might compare some of the bacteria with big land animals such as apes and tigers. On this scale, some of the larger viruses would compare with insects. Actually, in the microbe world, bacteria are often attacked by germ viruses, much as we are.