3 other bizarre things that took our breath away this week

1 CHINESE PLAY WITH FIREWORKS

“It’s potentially not good,” said Jonathan McDowell, about a Chinese rocket on course to come crashing back to Earth. As well as being a master of understatement, McDowell is an astrophysicist at Harvard University. “Last time they launched a Long March 5B rocket they ended up with big long rods of metal flying through the sky and damaging several buildings in the Ivory Coast.” The rocket is dropping at speed and is expected to make its appearance tomorrow in the northern hemisphere.

2 SNACK ON AN INSECT, WHY DON’T YOU?

In Japan, a vending machine offering insects (and only insects) for the public's snacking convenience was installed in Nagasaki Prefecture. It sells deep-fried or dried crickets, grasshoppers and other delicious goggas, like locusts, silkworm chrysalises, diving beetles and cicadas, for 600 to 1,000 yen (R75 to R130).

3 DANCING THE ZUMA

A video of former president Jacob Zuma doing a TikTok dance challenge to Something New by US rapper Wiz Khalifa nearly broke social media this week. He slinks his shoulders and bops around without a care, never on the back foot despite his legal team recently deserting him. He must be convinced he has the moves to avoid any sticky situation, though a jail term is coming at him faster than flaming rods plummeting from the sky.