DAVID ADAMS writes about the odder side of life…
• A thumbprint which may be that of Renaissance artist Michelangelo has reportedly been discovered on a small wax statue he created 500 years ago. Experts at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London found the mark on the dark red figurine which was a model for a larger sculpture (which remains unfinished). The figurine – titled A Slave – depicts a naked figure with an arm across its face and was part of Michelangelo’s preparations for Pope Julius II’s elaborate tomb in Rome. The model, which is believed to have been created between 1516 and 1519, is a rare survivor – Michelangelo is known to have destroyed many of his prepatory works.
• They’re not foods you’d normally put together but Brooklyn-based Van Leeuwen Ice Cream has released a new ‘macaroni and cheese’ flavour under a partnership with Kraft. Kraft described the ice cream, which went on sale in the US last week, as a “cool, creamy scoop of ice cream that brings that comforting, nostalgic feeling from a warm bowl of Kraft Macaroni & Cheese”. “We know that there is nothing more refreshing on a hot summer day than ice cream,” said Emily Violett, senior associate brand manager for Kraft Macaroni & Cheese, in a statement. “That is why we wanted to combine two of the most iconic comfort foods to create an ice cream with the unforgettable flavor of Kraft Macaroni & Cheese we all grew up with.” The jury is out.
• A Brazilian man living in Singapore has set a new record for completing the most number of burpees in an hour. Cassiano Rodrigues Laureano, who turned 35 on the day of the attempt, set a new record of a whopping 951 burpees last month in a result which was verified by Guinness World Records this week. “I’m tired”, said Laureano after completing the record at the city’s Tricolor Fight Team gym, where he teaches. “It didn’t go as smoothly as I thought it would go…But I’m very, very happy with the accomplishment.” The previous world record was held by Nick Anapolsky, who performed 879 chest-to-ground burpees in an hour earlier this year. Oh, and for those who don’t know what a burpee is: Starting in a standing position, bend down, and with hands on the ground, hop your legs back into a push-up, before then reversing the process and standing up. That’s one.
– With LEE YING SHAN and JOSEPH CAMPBELL, Reuters.