Melons, cucumbers, peaches, apples and most fruits require insects for pollination to stimulate the fruit production. European Honey Bees often get the credit for this work.

The law of unintended consequences is a sociological construct which seeks to explain that outcomes of a purposeful action not intended or foreseen may have an unexpected drawback.

Poverty simulation

The USD 383 school board changed its mind this week, but we’re glad it also explained why.

When the university rolled out the K-State 2025 plan nearly a decade ago under then-president Kirk Schulz, the idea of K-State becoming a top-50 public research university seemed lofty, but K-State was thriving. It was at an all-time high for enrollment.

Sen. Roberts should be consistent, vote for impeachment

As you might expect, security is a major priority when it comes to planning and facilitating operations for the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF). It’s a hot topic kept at the forefront of our everyday jobs as we work to keep our mission, research, and team secure.

Roberts should use

I have understood for awhile that video games are big business. I’ve understood for even longer that they’re a part of the culture — I’ve had kids wearing out their thumbs in the basement for two decades.

Maggie and I didn’t watch all the same cartoons when we were kids and had that privilege, which at least in my parents’ house was limited to Saturday mornings. But we both liked any and all Hanna-Barbera offerings as well as Looney Tunes.

Help man’s spirit live on with benefit

It’s a good day to have an adult beverage, if you’re so inclined.

The unsavory matter of the county clerk’s free house has come to an appropriate end. But there’s still something that doesn’t smell right.

The Manhattan school district is about to engage in one of the uglier jobs in local government. They’re going to tell you that you have to send your kid to a different school.

At 19, my best friend and I had all the necessary ingredients for success as we set about to change the U-joint in my car. The right parts, tools, time, space, plenty of beer and confidence in our ability. Even a shade tree. We suffered no doubts about our automotive repair chops.

The decision by President Trump to target an Iranian leader, who was put on a terrorist list by the Obama administration, and killed 608 Americans in Iraq alone, was pure and simple Kansas common sense. Our American president should and will always protect our country and her people from imm…

Journalists should institute bar-like system for accountability

A report from Manhattan Regional Airport director Jesse Romo on Tuesday reminded us of something: our airport is a pretty big success story.

Thank you, Manhattan for opportunity to serve

Military should be

In a lot of ways, it’s pretty remarkable that the Riley County Police Department’s basic structure has remained unchanged for nearly a half-century.

Let’s all take a moment to recognize the outgoing city commissioners and school board members as they pass the baton to their successors.

It was pretty easy, 10 years ago, to see what the biggest local story of the decade was going to be.

Is the Middle East a powder keg ready to blow? Or did an assassination late last week actually make it less dangerous? Is the targeted killing of a top official of a sovereign state just plain wrong? Or did he deserve it because of his murderous actions and plans for more?

Liberty Bowl director thanks K-State fans

Instead of predicting what will, or even what might, occur in this new year, it might be useful to consider how we want the year to turn out and what we can do to make it so.

This coming year will surely be decisive in a variety of ways, most obviously in the presidential election. Local races are also beginning to shape up, but there’s one significant question mark that will require some true cooperation to answer appropriately.

By now certainly you’ve heard of the unfortunate episode in Herington. It’s been all over the news, nationally and even internationally. That’s because it’s very much a story of our time — fakery, social media, and amped-up conflict as a result.

We’d like to wish you, dear reader, a happy New Year.

The top local news stories of 2019 are pretty easy to determine.

Throughout the autumn as the project dragged on though false starts, do-overs and delays, I was hatching a plan. I would very carefully catalog and annotate everything that had gone wrong, sit down with the contractor and negotiate a smaller number on the bottom line.

Here’s the bottom line from a Mercury analysis of K-State’s enrollment trends: There are a lot fewer students coming here from almost everywhere. In fact, it’s the exceptions that are the most interesting because they stick out.

Wednesday was Christmas. That means that the next few days are the biggest time of the year for … gift returns.

It’s not about secrecy, it’s about reasonable privacy