Free Viagra, Wet suit for penguins

Officials in Lo Prado, Chile, a working-class suburb of Santiago, have begun handing out free Viagra to senior residents. About 1,500 men are eligible for the program, which will cost about $20,000 and will run through the end of the year. “An active sexuality improves the overall quality of life,” explained Mayor Gonzalo Navarette Munoz, who pushed for the program. Participants are required to provide a doctor’s certification that they suffer from erectile dysfunction, and that they are healthy enough to handle the drug’s possible side effects. Other mayors in the Santiago area are planning similar programs.

Pierre, a 25-year-old African penguin, was getting so old that he was losing his feathers. He shivered with cold and refused to go near water. But his handlers at the California Academy of Sciences had a novel solution: a custom-made wet suit. Working with Oceanic Worldwide, a supplier of diving gear, academy scientists made Pierre a close-fitting rubber garment with openings for his flippers, tail, and feet. “I would walk behind him,” said biologist Pam Schaller, “and look at where there were any gaps, and cut and refit and cut and refit until it was extremely streamlined.” Since wearing the suit, Pierre has gained weight and is again splashing with his fellow penguins.

After getting married at a historic synagogue in the Chinatown section of Washington, D.C., Anneliesa Clump and Scott Alprin had to get to their reception several blocks away in Dupont Circle. But instead of fighting their way through downtown traffic in a limo, the couple, trailed by dozens of guests, hopped underground and into the Metro. As the newlyweds passed by in full wedding regalia, fellow riders greeted them with grins and congratulations. “Weddings get so kind of out of hand,” said Clump, a project coordinator at Georgetown University. “We’re city people, we take Metro everywhere. It just kinda made sense. You know, no fuss.”

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up