Two years ago in summer, an interesting experiment was planned in a region affected by drought in Senegal in Africa.

The aim of the experiment was to draw full potential of tomatoes with the help of music in the course of cultivation. For this purpose, a conventional radio-cassette recorder and a tape on which is recorded a melody were used. These were all the preparations.

We often hear that music is effective in promoting the growth of plants. However, no one has been able to give convincing explanations of such phenomena. It is therefore natural that most of the reactions of those who engaged in the experiment were negative: "It's joking" or "Incredible".

For comparison, two sections were prepared for cultivating tomatoes: a section with music (referred to as "music section") and a section for control without music (referred to as "control section"). Taking into consideration the results obtained in the preceding experiences, the quantity of water given to each section was different: twice a day for the control section according to the standard of the region; once a day for the music section but with music for three minutes every day.

No less than two weeks, the difference of growth became remarkable between the plants of tomato of the two sections. The difference of heights became larger and larger thereafter. When the time of crop came, the difference in number, size and appearance of fruits was apparent between the two sections. The harvest of musical tomatoes became, as a whole, twenty times more than that of the control section. Furthermore, what is to be noted is that although insects gave damages to fruits in the control section, tomatoes in the music section were left intact.

Facts are more convincing than theories. Seeing is believing.

The difference was so apparent that farmers who have observed the experiment from the beginning have completely changed their mind in the course of the experiment and even said at the end: "We have expected such good results from the beginning".

What "magic" was used to produce such remarkable effects?

The key to understand the magic consists, of course, in the melody recorded on the tape.

The melody was offered by Dr. Joel Sternheimer, a physicist in France. He has elucidated the secret or a secret, at least, of the effects of music on living creatures through the research of quantum physics and molecular biology.

According to him, the principle is as follows:

Animals and plants synthesize a number of proteins in their body. In the process of synthesis, each protein being formed emits a series of quantum-mechanical signals which are related with the amino acids sequence. By decoding the signals and transforming them into audible sounds, melodies proper to each protein are obtained, which are called, as a whole, "Protein Music". If the Protein Music is in turn played near animals or plants, the synthesis of corresponding protein is controlled through a kind of resonance phenomena. This is the essential difference of the Protein Music from that composed by human beings.

The melody used in the experiment of tomatoes in Senegal was that of TAS14.

In general, plants begin to produce a special protein when sufficient water is not available so that they can be resistive to scare water. The mechanism might be obtained in the course of evolution to survive even under severe circumstances. One of the proteins which increase resistance to water deficiency is the TAS14 of tomatoes.

By playing the melody of TAS14 near the plants of tomato, the synthesis of the protein was promoted and water resistance became increased, which has lead to good growth of plants and fruits of tomato.