Sideswipe: February 17: What was that thud?

You could have let me know at the top.

Photo / Supplied

Time-zone hog

When you wonder which country has the most time zones, your mind probably goes to the countries with the largest area – Russia, Canada, the US, China, etc – but that is incorrect. Instead, it’s better to think about the question in terms of history, colonialism, and global extent rather than sheer land mass. Surprisingly, the country with the most time zones is France with 12 (13 including its claim in Antarctica), according to the Guinness Book of Records. This high number is primarily because of the various territories across the globe it still rules over, from French Polynesia and islands in the Caribbean right across to islands in the Indian Ocean and Western Pacific.

Sign of the times

What's on the menu at daycare today?

Contraception for da boys

A new contraceptive for people with penises temporarily stops sperm swimming. The new birth control method, which has work for mice, doesn’t mess with hormones but rather blocks a cellular signaling protein, acting as a “sperm-swim switch”. The effect lasts for several hours after ingestion.

Confessions

1. “When I got married my mother told me to save for an exit fund should the marriage fail; I have now been married 49 years. The “exit” fund now stands at £315,000 (NZ$604,000). My husband has no idea.”

2. “I leave for work before hubby gets up - he ALWAYS sleepily reaches out for my hand as I leave - every day for the last 10 years, and I haven’t told him it’s one of my favourite parts of the day, because he might overthink it and stop doing it.”

3. “About 20 years ago a story went viral that Shania Twain was an amputee - you never saw her without cowboy boots or something. It even made the Canadian Globe & Mail. Me and my mate made it up when bored at work.”