World’s heaviest radish

A Japanese company earned a Guinness World Record when its empl­oyees harvested a giant radish weighing 101 pounds and 1.8 ounces.

Manda Fermentation Co., which specialises in supplements and fertilisers made from fermented plants, uses its technology to grow giant radishes. The radish was harvested in late February, earning the record for heaviest radish. The company usually harvests its radishes after three months, but the record-breaking radish was allowed to grow for six months, GWR said.

Youngest person to publish a book

A four-year-old boy from United Arab Emirates is the world’s youngest person to publish a book. Guinness World Records said Saeed Rashed AlMheiri was four years and 218 days old when he published his book, The Elephant Saeed and the Bear. The record was verified when the book sold 1,000 copies.

AlMheiri, whose book is about kindness and friendship, was inspired by his sister, AlDhabi, who holds the Guinness World Records title for youngest person to publish a bilingual book (female) and youngest person to publish a bilingual book series (female).

“I love my sister so much and I enjoy playing with her all the time,” AlMheiri said. “We read, write, draw and do so many activities together. I wrote my book [inspired by her] as I felt that I could have my own book too.”

Man does 32 pull-ups from helicopter in a minute

An Armenian athlete, Hamazasp Hloyan broke a Guinness World Record when he clung to the skids of a helicopter and performed 32 pull-ups in a minute, in Yerevan.

Hloyan, who trained for the record attempt with fellow Armenian Guinness World Record holder Roman Sahradyan, completed 32 pull-ups in one minute to take the title.

The previous record, 25, was set by Belgian athlete Stan Bruininck in 2022.

Orca Lolita may return to Pacific after 52 years

More than 50 years after the orca known as Lolita was captured for public display, plans are in place to return her from the Miami Seaquarium to her home waters in the Pacific Northwest.

An unlikely coalition involving the theme park’s owner, an animal rights group and an NFL owner-philanthropist announced the agreement recently.

Lolita, also known as Tokitae, was about four years old when she was captured in summer 1970. She spent decades performing for paying crowds before falling ill. Last year, the Miami Seaquarium stopped staging her shows under an agreement with federal regulators. Lolita — now 57 years old and 5,000 pounds (2,267 kilogrammes) — currently lives in a tank that measures 80 feet by 35 feet (24 metres by 11 metres) and is 20 feet (6 metres) deep.

The time frame for moving the animal could be 18 to 24 months away, and the cost could reach $20 million. The plan is to transport Lolita by plane to an ocean sanctuary in the waters between Washington and Canada, where she will initially swim inside a large net while trainers and veterinarians teach her how to catch fish.

Published in Dawn, Young World, April 8th, 2023