Robotic rites

The Life Ending Industry Expo in Tokyo on Aug. 23 revealed the latest in Japanese innovation: a robot programmed to perform the duties of a Buddhist priest at a funeral. “Pepper,” the robot priest, hasn’t presided over a funeral yet, but its maker believes a shortage of Buddhist priests and a rapidly aging population in Japan will lead to a demand for the robot’s services. The Reuters news service reports Pepper will cost about $450 for a funeral. A human priest costs about $2,200.

Mopping up crime

This past April, a female shopkeeper thwarted Stephan Hoggan’s armed robbery attempt in Glasgow, Scotland, by swinging a mop at him. The next day at a different convenience store, a similar scene played out wherein the Scottish man attempted to rob the store and another female employee chased him off with a mop. Hoggan confessed to the crimes during an Aug. 10 trial and received a five-year sentence.

Sour grape

An Australian woman who won nearly $120,000 in a slip-and-fall judgment against Woolworths supermarket has now seen the decision reversed. An Australian court of appeal ruled Aug. 14 that the supermarket chain had not been negligent when Colleen McQuillan took a tumble after stepping on a loose grape on the floor. A lower court previously ruled Woolworths negligent for allowing the grape to trip a customer, but the higher court reasoned that another customer could have spilled the fruit.

Zero tolerance

Due to small amounts of alcohol found in its products, the United Arab Emirates has instituted a ban on Kikkoman soy sauce. The move comes after scientists from the UAE tested the fermented Japanese sauce and found it contained around 2 percent alcohol by volume. Only certain hotels and bars with licenses may sell alcohol in the Muslim nation.

Free rider

After decades of taking the bus, Barbara Rygiel won’t have to pay any longer. The Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority awarded the 103-year-old resident of South Pasadena, Fla., a lifetime bus pass in August after many years as a loyal customer. Still active and independent, Rygiel uses the bus at least four times a week in order to go to church. She also uses the bus for other errands. “It means everything to me,” a happy Rygiel told Bay News 9. “Look at how much I can save.”

Stroke of genius

Tired of traffic, Munich, Germany, resident Benjamin David has traded his bicycle for a wetsuit. David now swims 1.24 miles to work down the Isar River rather than fight through traffic on his bike. “I’m not a monk. When I was on my bike, I would yell at cars. When I was on foot, I would yell at cyclists, and so on and so forth,” David said. “And just a few meters to the side of that is the river, and if you just swim down that, it’s completely relaxed and refreshing.” David says the current is fast enough for him to arrive at work in about 25 minutes if he only uses his flotation device to glide down the river. If he swims, he can cut the time down to 15 minutes.

A lot of heart

Doug Bergeson of Peshtigo, Wis., hurt himself while working on his house, so he drove himself to the hospital, parked his truck, and walked into the emergency room. His injury? He had accidentally shot a nail into his chest with a nail gun. He said he wasn’t worried about the injury until he realized that about 2.5 inches of the 3.5-inch nail was embedded in his chest. “I could see the nail moving with my heartbeat,” he told the Associated Press. “It was kind of twitching with every heartbeat.” Doctors say the nail hit his heart, and that Bergeson came close to death. The accident occurred on June 25. Bergeson was preparing to go back to work two months later.

Car and driver

Motorists in Arlington, Va., received a startle on Aug. 7 when a Ford van appeared to be motoring through the community without a driver. NBC Washington’s Adam Tuss found the car and approached the driver’s side with a camera, revealing someone behind the wheel after all—albeit dressed as a car seat and leaning way back in the vehicle and operating it with a hand at the bottom of the wheel. Days later, Virginia Tech professors admitted to performing the experiment with the goal of judging other drivers’ reactions to a driverless car.

Up in arms down under

Matthew Banks of Byron Shire, Australia, says he’s a good environmentalist who doesn’t litter. “I know about sustainability,” he told Australia’s Northern Star, “and I recycle everything.” Still, he received a $450 fine on Aug. 6 for littering in dangerous circumstances. The offending substance was coffee, poured out by friends next to his motorhome. Banks says he got into a “massive argument” with the ranger who gave him the ticket. “I am not paying $450. It’s just outrageous,” Banks said. Instead, he said he’ll pack his motorhome and leave the town.