
Running with the robots
China is all prepped to host the world’s first half marathon with 12,000 human participants and bipedal robots—or humanoid robots that can walk on two legs, similar to humans—from over 20 companies. Scheduled for April, the participants of the race compete across a 21-km course in Beijing’s Economic-Technological Development Area, also known as E-Town. This event is being hailed as a bold testament about the future of the tech world and of human-robot collaboration and its endless possibilities. The event will feature a diverse line-up of robotic participants, including humanoid robots, drones, and wheeled machines, each designed to tackle the 42-km challenge in their own unique way.
Humanoid robots will mimic running and walking, while the drones will soar above the course to capture aerial footage of the event. For human runners, the event presents a unique challenge: competing alongside machines that don’t experience fatigue. However, the robots will face their own set of challenges, including navigating complex terrain, avoiding obstacles, and maintaining optimal performance throughout the race. Organisers have emphasised that the event is designed to foster collaboration rather than encourage rivalry.
Excess baggage
Mittens, the jet-setting cat, takes three flights in 24 hours after a baggage blunder leaves her stranded at 30,000 feet
REPRESENTATIONAL PIC/NY POST
Mittens, the Maine Coon, has out-travelled most humans for a while now. The eight-year-old cat was meant to fly one-way from Christchurch, New Zealand to Melbourne, Australia with her family but ended up taking three trans-Tasman flights in 24 hours thanks to a baggage blunder. Her owner, Margo Neas, waited for Mittens at Melbourne airport—only to be told the cat was still on the plane! After a few more flights, Mittens finally arrived in Melbourne, a little thinner but unharmed.
Parde ke peeche kya hai
PIC/ODDITY CENTRAL
Chinese influencer Ah Miao has sparked a viral trend by urging men to wear Adam’s Apple covers—because if women have to conceal their “sensitive areas”, why shouldn’t men? The initiative, aimed at highlighting gender inequality, has led to an unexpected boom in sales, with lace, wool, and even pig-snouted designs flying off e-commerce shelves. Whether satire or statement, it’s got China talking.
Bruno said WHAT?!
PIC/GETTY IMAGES
Bruno Mars and Sexyy Red have teamed up for the most eyebrow-raising collab, “Fat, Juicy & Wet”—a track with lyrics so explicit it might make even Kidz Bop given up. Mars, once the king of smooth romance, fully embraces raunchy. Love it or hate it, the song is impossible to ignore—and strangely catchy. It’s a shame to see such a rizzler lose his charm.
From zero to hero?!
Want to look like a hero without the danger? A Malaysian man is offering a “villain for hire” service, where he pretends to harass clients’ partners, giving them the perfect chance to swoop in and play the knight in shining armour.
Hidden horrors
Hidden under the floor of a 250-year-old home, a book with gold-trimmed pages and eerie old photos has the Internet spooked. Found beneath a loose floorboard, it features shadowy images of empty rooms—one of which resembles the house itself.
Monkey vs PB&J
Forty-three rhesus macaques staged an escape from a South Carolina, USA research facility, but after two months of freedom, the final four fugitives have been recaptured. Their weakness? PB&J sandwiches, which is what was used to lure them back.