At the Moscow Open chess tournament on July 19, a chess-playing robot apparently became unsettled by a 7-year-old player's quick move in the game, so it grabbed the child's hand and snapped one of his fingers, the Guardian reported. "The robot broke the child's finger," said Sergey Lazarev, president of the Moscow Chess Federation. "This is of course bad." Another official explained: "There are certain safety rules and the child, apparently, violated them. When he made his move, he did not realize he first had to wait." The player, Christopher, returned to the tournament the next day. His parents have contacted the public prosecutor's office.
A burning desire
Christie Louise Jones, 49, of Richfield, N.C., was likely looking for revenge on a former boyfriend on July 22; instead, she got charged with arson and other crimes, the Salisbury Post reported. A woman called the Rowan County Sheriff's Office to say a woman unknown to her was outside her home, trying to set it on fire. The arson attempt started with a pile of burning wood on the front porch; while trying to reach the hose, the homeowner realized his propane tank also was on fire. That's when he noticed a car parked across his driveway and a woman standing beside it. When he approached her, he said, "She looked at me like she didn't know who I was." And she didn't. She drove away but was later apprehended; deputies said her ex-boyfriend owns property in the area. Just not that property.
En garde
A 73-year-old woman fishing with friends off a boat along the Florida coast on July 19 was stabbed by a 100-pound sailfish when it leapt out of the water and into the boat, the Washington Post reported. Katherine Perkins, from Arnold, Md., was stabbed in her groin area by the fish's pointed bill as her companions tried to reel it in. The boat returned to shore and Perkins was hospitalized for treatment of her wound.
Tattooed discount
Dean Mayhew 30, of Sussex, England, has a habit of forgetting his loyalty card when he goes grocery shopping, the Daily Record reported. The scaffolder is a father of seven, so the savings really add up if he can get the discounts. So Mayhew got the QR code from his card tattooed on his forearm — and it works. "Sometimes I'm not the cleverest of guys but [people have] said that for me, it's pretty genius," Mayhew said. "Every time I go in there, they're shocked. I could use the one on my phone but I want to use the one on my arm, as it's funny."
On a mission
On July 22, Corey Johnson, 29, of Ocala, Fla., attempted to enter the Patrick Space Force Base in Brevard County with a special message from President Biden. Johnson claimed the president had told him to steal a 2013 Ford F150, then drive it to the base to let them know that aliens were fighting Chinese dragons. Fox35 Orlando reported that Johnson was apprehended outside the base and charged with grand theft auto.
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