GENETICAL ENGINEERING/CLONING

In January 2002, the first cloned pigs genetically modified specifically for the purposes of replacement human organ transplantation were born at the Roslin Institute, just outside Edinburgh, amidst much "tampering with God's work" outcry as well as approving acclaim.

As news of their birth broke, the share price of PPL, the organisation also responsible for Dolly, the world's first cloned sheep, rocketed spectacularly only to slump again when, just a few days later, Dolly, it was announced, was suffering from arthritis.

While the GM sceptics had a field day, PPL took great pains to assure everybody (but especially their shareholders) that this was, in their view, only a minor setback in the righteous quest to develop the perfect farmyard animal.