The search for the secret of eternal life has advanced a step, after scientists claimed they had located the gene responsible for healthy old age. Icelandic biotechnologists said they had isolated the Methuselah gene, which they believe could lead to the development of drugs enabling people to live longer.
One of the key figures behind the creation of Dolly the sheep has backed the cloning of animals for meat and milk. Professor Ian Wilmut, of the Roslin Institute near Edinburgh, claimed that the technique could overcome food shortages.
A book review of Creation: Life and How to Make It by Stephen Grand, the creator of the popular artificial life game, "Creatures".