Tesco demands ID from man buying sausage
And other stories from the stranger side of life
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
A shopper said he was “very surprised” when asked if he was old enough to buy a sausage at the self-checkout in Tesco. A tech error meant the supermarket accidentally listed a saucisson sec, a dry-cured pork product, as secateurs, which, as a bladed item, meant potential buyers must prove their age. Fufu Fang, 30, said: “I did a double-take and thought, ‘I hope I've bought the right kind of sausage’.”
Mind-reading robot unveiled in China
A mind-reading robot unveiled in China is “96% accurate” at reading human brain waves, scientists have claimed. The device, which scans a user’s brainwaves and muscle activity, has been designed by the Intelligent Manufacturing Innovation Technology Centre at China Three Gorges University. A boffin said the device followed commands of people most of the time but did need volunteers to “concentrate very hard” for their brain messages to be read.
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.
Soldier’s letter delivered 76 years late
A letter sent from a US soldier stationed in Germany to his mother in the US has been delivered 76 years after it was sent. Army Sgt John Gonsalves sent the letter to Woburn, Massachusetts, in December 1945, but it sat unopened for more than 75 years before being found in a US Postal Service distribution facility in Pittsburgh. His widow, who received the message, said: “It’s like he came back to me, you know?”
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
The UK expands its Hong Kong visa schemeThe Explainer Around 26,000 additional arrivals expected in the UK as government widens eligibility in response to crackdown on rights in former colony
-
One great cookbook: Joshua McFadden’s ‘Six Seasons of Pasta’the week recommends The pasta you know and love. But ever so much better.
-
Scientists are worried about amoebasUnder the radar Small and very mighty
-
Epstein files topple law CEO, roil UK governmentSpeed Read Peter Mandelson, Britain’s former ambassador to the US, is caught up in the scandal
-
Iran and US prepare to meet after skirmishesSpeed Read The incident comes amid heightened tensions in the Middle East
-
Israel retrieves final hostage’s body from GazaSpeed Read The 24-year-old police officer was killed during the initial Hamas attack
-
China’s Xi targets top general in growing purgeSpeed Read Zhang Youxia is being investigated over ‘grave violations’ of the law
-
Panama and Canada are negotiating over a crucial copper mineIn the Spotlight Panama is set to make a final decision on the mine this summer
-
Why Greenland’s natural resources are nearly impossible to mineThe Explainer The country’s natural landscape makes the task extremely difficult
-
Iran cuts internet as protests escalateSpeed Reada Government buildings across the country have been set on fire
-
US nabs ‘shadow’ tanker claimed by RussiaSpeed Read The ship was one of two vessels seized by the US military