DAVID ADAMS writes about the odder side of life…
• A new record has been set for the world’s tallest Lego structure with the construction of a 35.05 metre high tower in Milan, Italy. Using more than 500,000 bricks, the colourful tower took a team of volunteers five days to construct using a cherry picker. The world record, which defeated the previous record by just under a foot, was verified by Guinness World Records. Seven Euros were donated to the Urban Oasis project for every centimetre of the structure.
• Reckon you can toss an egg? The 10th annual World Egg Throwing Championships were held in an English village last weekend. Claiming a history dating back to 1322 (when monks had to throw eggs to parishioners over a swollen river), the winners of the modern competition are those who can throw and catch an egg over the greatest distance without breakage. This year’s winners at the event in the Lincolnshire village of Swaton were reportedly Richard Gutsell and Michael Speakman. Aside from the main egg throwing event, the contest also features an egg relay, egg target throwing, Russian egg roulette and firing an egg from a trebuchet.
• It’s been the dream of millions, ever since they saw ewoks speeding through the forest in Return of the Jedi. And now hover bikes may soon be a mass-produced reality. UK company Malloy Aeronautics and US company SURVICE Engineering Co have joined in the development of hover bike technology for the US Department of Defense. The prototype “bi-copter” combines the “simplicity of a motorbike and the freedom of helicopter” and can be flown manned or unmanned. Exciting times! For more, see www.hover-bike.com.
