By ERIC REGULY, Toronto Globe and Mail

ROME - She is the "she-devil" in some British newspaper headlines. In the United States, the headlines are gentler; a New York Times column called her "An Innocent Abroad." The Italians -- mesmerized by the allegations of sex, drugs and murderous violence -- consider her a bigger personality than Carla Bruni, a poll showed.

Arab states invest their oil fortunes in the craziest things, from the proposed Mile-High Tower in Jiddah to the indoor ski resort in dry-as-dust Dubai. Perhaps the craziest idea yet is Saudi Arabian wheat. Some 30 years ago, the lake- and river-less kingdom decided it should be self-sufficient in wheat.

BASEL, Switzerland -- For years, the agribusiness industry has ever so quietly been making new seeds to turn everyday crops -- corn, soybeans, canola, cotton, vegetables -- into Olympic farmland athletes. These genetically modified crops are being engineered to grow bigger, faster, stronger. They can resist certain herbicides and pests and may soon withstand drought.