Good week, Bad week
Good week for: Level playing fields; Seekers, Beaters, Chasers, and Keepers; Michael JacksonBad week for: Charlie Sheen; Reducing the size of government; Everyone who bought one of those 2012 books
Good week for:
Level playing fields, after the NBA banned a sneaker made by Athletic Propulsion Labs because its “spring-loaded propulsion system” supposedly adds 3.5 inches to a player’s vertical leap.
Seekers, Beaters, Chasers, and Keepers, after Purdue University announced it is hosting a Quidditch tournament—the sport invented by author J.K. Rowling for the Harry Potter series. Rather than fly around on brooms, players from nine colleges will run around on a field with brooms tucked between their legs.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

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.
Michael Jackson, who was named the world’s top-earning dead celebrity this year by Forbes magazine, with $275 million in music and movie revenues—more than Lady Gaga, Madonna, and Jay-Z combined earned last year while alive.
Bad week for:
Charlie Sheen, after police said the actor went on a cocaine- and alcohol-fueled binge and trashed his New York City hotel room, while a female “escort” hid in the bathroom. “Charlie had an allergic reaction to some medication,” said Sheen’s agent.
Reducing the size of government, now that Denver will vote on an initiative to establish a seven-member “Extraterrestrial Affairs Commission” to handle “potential encounters or interactions with extraterrestrial intelligent beings or their vehicles.”
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Everyone who bought one of those 2012 books, after new research found an error in the conversion of Mayan to modern calendars, and that the “end of days” predicted by the Mayan calendar is not Dec. 21, 2012, but may be 50 to 100 years later.
-
Could medics' misgivings spell the end of the assisted dying bill?
Today's Big Question The Royal College of Psychiatrists has identified 'serious concerns' with the landmark bill – and MPs are taking notice
-
The Chelsea Townhouse: London luxury feels right at home
The Week Recommends This boutique hotel strikes the right note between sophisticated and cosy
-
What are the different types of nuclear weapons?
The Explainer Speculation mounts that post-war taboo on nuclear weapons could soon be shattered by use of 'battlefield' missiles
-
Good week, Bad week
feature Making amends, Justice, Saying ‘cheese’
-
Good week, Bad week
feature Reptile experience; Painless budget cuts; Driving with kids
-
Good week, Bad week
feature Closing the sale; Calling 911; Going to the circus
-
Good week, Bad week
feature Asking Google anything; Misanthropes; Persistence
-
Good week, Bad week
feature Torture, Irritating the cat, Being cheap
-
Good week, Bad week
feature Strolling in Naples; Infallibility; Mississippi
-
Good week, Bad week
feature Tesla; Entrepreneurship; Fortune-tellers
-
Good week, Bad week
feature The miracles of science; Wild times in Wisconsin; Holding hands