Here, authors characterize how different acoustics affect the properties of a Bunsen-type flame.

Agricultural fertilizer application is a key innovation in providing enough food to feed the world. Fertilizers come in various types and farmers must choose which fertilizer is the best for their applications. To learn more about the effectiveness of various fertilizers, Wilson and Rasmus studied the effects of natural and chemical fertilizers on growth of basil plants.

With healthy lung performance being critical to daily function and maintenance of physical health, the authors of this study explored the impact of airflow training from playing a wind instrument on respiratory system function. With careful quantification of peak expiratory flow of individuals who played the trumpet, the authors found no expiratory capacity difference between students who played the trumpet and students who did not play a wind instrument.

Bubbles! In this study, the authors investigate the effects that different materials, temperature, and distance have on the formation of water bubbles on the surface of copper and steel. They calculated mathematical relations based on the outcomes to better understand whether interstitial hydrogen present in the d-block metals form hydrogen bonds with the water bubbles to account for the structural and mechanical stability.

In this study, the authors investigate whether microplastics affect terrestrial plant growth and soil quality.

In this study, the authors investigate whether the addition of microbes from native soil enhanced the seed germination and growth of mung beans, pumpkins, and pea flower plants.

In this article, the authors investigate the shear modulus of different types of paper in the setting of the crumpling effect.

This study assesses the capacity for milkweed species, an important host plant for Monarch butterflies, to grow in desert environments with different water levels.

Farmers will need to increase crop yields to feed the world's growing population efficiently. The authors here investigate the effects of growing corn in the presence or absence of ragweed, an invasive weed found in many fields and gardens. Surprisingly, the authors found that corn grown in the presence of weeds grew taller and were more productive than corn that had weeds removed. This may help gardeners rethink the necessity of weeding, and may point a way to improve farm yields in the future.

In this study, the ability of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi to limit the growth of an agricultural weed Cirsium arvense is tested. This has important implications for developing natural herbicides.