Genetically modified (gm) technology does not find favour with an overwhelming majority of Britons, says the report GM Nation?, the result of an unprecedented public opinion exercise. While 91 per cent respondents thought gm could have negative environmental effects, 93 per cent felt gm technology was driven by profit motive and not public interest.

In a major image makeover exercise, McDonald's Corporation plans to market a healthier meal, which is to come with an exercise booklet and a pedometer. Bob Greene, Oprah Winfrey's personal trainer, has been hired for promotions.

A new cross-national public opinion study has found the citizens of us, France and Japan, some of the most industrialised nations in the world, to be among the most misinformed about global warming. The study is authored by Steven R Brechin, a sociology professor at the University of Illinois, us.