"Ancillary Materials"

By Anna Rose Welch, Editorial & Community Director, Advancing RNA

There’s a fascinating and often hilarious world out there. Here are some of the most interesting, coolest, weirdest, or down-right bizarre articles I’ve found in the past few weeks. Hopefully, these will keep your brain operating in different ways and will give just enough random information to remain the smartest, most interesting person at your next cocktail/dinner party.  

•  The words “French” & “Taco” aren’t words that go naturally together. But it turns out these sandwiches (yes, a “French taco” is a sandwich) are a very real and otherworldly-sounding combination of a panini, kebob, and burrito — with fries stuffed in there, too. BRB. Going to Lyon.  
• This genius won an “illustrate your protein” contest by portraying small intestine enterocytes as cats. Learn more about “If Proteins Were Cats” here.  
• This article on the secret code to successfully hacking McDonalds’(always broken and “ridiculously overengineered) ice cream machines will likely resonate with those of you learning that “just press one” is rarely the right cryopreservation approach. You know you want to learn more about the mind-blowing battle emerging over “hidden menus,” “surveillance bugs,” and “the quirks of the soft-serve industry.”   
• “‘Creature” terrorizing Poland town turns out to be a croissant stuck in a tree.” Enough said.  
• The medlar, a forgotten Medieval fruit, was typically eaten rotten. It has been described as “not worth a turd until it’s ripe and then it tastes like shit.” Coincidentally, the shape of the fruit also earned it the name “open-arse.” Good luck forgetting this fruit now.  
• One shocked couple realized that the painting they were going to sell for 1,500 euros was actually a long-forgotten work by Caravaggio. The historian who rediscovered “The Crowning With Thorns” believes the painting was subject to a “condemnation of memory” after Caravaggio murdered someone and went on the run. In other words, Caravaggio and, in turn, his painting got “cancelled.”  
• If you love tea, this is a beautiful article on the history and rituals surrounding masala chai (often mislabeled chai tea or chai tea lattes in the U.S.). This article also provides some recipes for you to make your own masala chai — and they sound amazing.