In Germany, where people pig out on bratwurst and don't seem to slam away a whole lot of salad, the economy is thriving.

WSJ: Moving Targets: Joe Queenan on the Mediterranean Diet

Visionaries see a future in which things like household rubbish and pig slurry will provide the fuel for cars and homes, doing away with the need for dirty fossil fuels.

ECONOMIST: Talking rubbish

The tour continues with a butchery skills master class at the Taste Tradition butchery 13km away in the market town of Thirsk, where participants learn how to butcher a pig and make the most of each of the cuts, while preparing half an uncooked pig to take home and enjoy.

BBC: Eat your way around Yorkshire

The scientists mixed it with the VEGF and injected the combination into the hearts of two groups of test animals, rats and pigs, in which they had induced heart attacks. (Pig hearts bear significant similarities to human ones.) In both cases, instead of being washed away, the VEGF stayed on the lattice and slowly got released over several weeks.

WSJ: Nanotechnology Holds Promise for Heart Patients