Maggie Wagner's work on soil microbes in Idaho has the potential to improve crop yields and address the problem of world hunger.  It's a great example of how basic research can lead to important practical results.  Wagner has discovered that certain microbes improve plants' nutrition to speed up flowering.  This could have a dramatic impact on agriculture in the future, when the world's population is projected to reach 9.8 billion people, and increase of 38%.  Good work, Maggie!