Is this the smallest apple in the world?
A tiny apple was found in Imperial College London last Thursday, that may be the smallest adult apple ever recorded in history.
The petit pomme is believed to be of the `Cox' variety and measures only 3cm in length, one quarter the size of its fully grown counterparts.
It was found by an anonymous student who, mistaking it for a Malteser, nearly choked to death while attempting to swallow it whole. Luckily, the scoffing scholar expelled the apple before digestion juices could affect it.
The department of nano-structures have recovered the finite fruit and are commencing tests to examine its molecular make-up with the aim of determining the origin of its unique deformity.
The welfare of the stunted snack has stirred up debate in the college, with ripples being felt by a wide cross-section of the university. There have been protests from a fruitarian activist group who are objecting to the dissection of the rare specimen. "You wouldn't chop up a dwarf, this apple should be treated with equal respect," says Colin Core, leader of the movement. By contrast some religious groups approve of the slaughter, particularly Christian religions who believe the apple to be a symbol of sin. In Latin the words `apple' and `evil' share the same name (malum).
An international symbol of simplicity and crunchiness, it is a little known fact that in early history apples used to be thrown at weddings. By degrees, this tradition was eventually replaced with pelting rice at the happy couple, much to the disappointment of wayward wedding guests. In ancient Greece, throwing an apple at a person's bed was an invitation for sexual intercourse, though there is no recorded stipulation on whether the person should be in it at the time.
Famous apples include the apple the snakedevil gave to Eve, Snow White's apple of death, iPods and New York; the latter being a full billion times bigger than the miniature mutant found in Imperial College.
Great moments in apple history include the discovery of fossilised apple remains dating from 6,500 B.C. found among excavations in Jericho in Jordan, and the finding of dried apple slices on plates in the tomb of Queen Pu-Abi at Ur near Basara, in Southern Iran, linking royalty to the irresistible seduction of apples.
So next time you're biting into the fragrant fruit, spare a thought for its smaller sibling. This is one apple who no doubt wishes that today it could keep the doctor away.
