A list of curious facts

One: The world's largest cruise ship is nearly 1,200 feet long and weighs a projected 250,800 tonnes. Icon of the Seas can hold some 5,610 passengers and 2,350 crew—and will be part of the Royal Caribbean fleet come October. It has 20 decks and eight ‘neighbourhoods’. But most importantly this:

The boat’s piece de resistance will be the world’s largest waterpark at sea. Named Category 6, it’ll feature six record-breaking water slides, but guests who want a more leisurely experience can also relax in the boat’s seven pools and nine whirlpools.

Because what do you absolutely need when you are at sea—more water! As you can see in the lead image, it looks more like candyland lol! (CNN)

Two: Most of us believe that wooden batons used to conduct orchestras are a time-honoured tradition. But, in fact, the first conducting baton only dates back to the 1960s—invented by an orchestra conductor in Minnesota. So what about the great masters?

Bach likely conducted with his hands, or, like Beethoven, waved a rolled-up piece of sheet music. The first conductor to use anything like a modern baton may have been Jean Baptiste Lully, a 17th-century French Baroque composer. Lully signalled his orchestra’s beat with a long wooden staff, which he thumped on the floor for emphasis. On one occasion he missed the floor, and accidentally stabbed his foot; he died of gangrene several months later.

Ouch! Happily, its modern-day avatar is far less deadly. Craftsmanship Magazine has everything you ever need to know about batons.

Three: Last year—to mark India’s 75 years of independence—BBC released archival footage of Jawaharlal Nehru’s first-ever television interview that aired in June, 1953. Dressed impeccably in a suit, he was—as you’d expect—polished, articulate and assertive—while being grilled by a panel of journalists. And as you can see from the clip below, he didn’t let a bunch of white men tell brown people they ought not to be so mean to their former rulers:). You can see more highlights here.

Splainer easter egg!

Editor’s note: Every once in a while, we drop something funny, whimsical or beautiful in an unexpected part of the edition. Our last easter egg was a lovely poem called ‘Sentimental Moment or Why Did the Baguette Cross the Road?’ by Robert Hershon.

Feeling like everyone’s picking on you? Here’s a perfect painting by Pere Borrell del Caso to inspire your great escape from the haters. Its title: ‘Escaping Criticism’:) If you want to know more about it, check out either The 8 Percent or the Cultural Tutor.