Reuters Life!

LONDON (Reuters) - Levels of happiness could help shape economic policy in the industrialized world in the same way such factors have gained prominence in developing countries, said economics Nobel laureate Amartya Sen.

SYDNEY (Reuters Life!) - Eco-friendly managers and staff are the key to making a retailer go green, according to a study listing 15 of the world's top eco-friendly retailers in Europe, North America, Asia and Australia.

ROME (Reuters) - The Italian edition of Rolling Stone has named Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi its "rock star of the year," paying tribute to his "lifestyle worthy of the greatest rock star."

LONDON (Reuters) - A first edition of Charles Darwin's "On the Origin of Species," which had been kept in a toilet bookcase for years, will go on sale this week and is expected to fetch 40-60,000 pounds ($66-100,000).

LONDON (Reuters) - Irish rock band U2 are to headline next year's Glastonbury Festival on the 40th anniversary of the world's biggest green field arts and music event.

LONDON (Reuters Life!) - Aerial photographs of prisoners in high security Colditz and POWs who worked on the infamous bridge over the River Kwai are among images now available to view online for the first time.

HONG KONG (Reuters) - A casino in the Chinese gambling haven of Macau will open Asia's first Michael Jackson shrine after its owners bought the late King of Pop's iconic white rhinestone glove for $350,000 at a U.S. auction.

BEIJING (Reuters Life!) - All work and little play is the norm for most children in China, where stiff competition for future jobs and ambitious parents mean long hours in the company of school books, not friends.

LONDON (Reuters Life!) - Tis the season to be jolly -- as well as pass your flu germs to others at Christmas get-togethers unless you're careful.

NEW YORK (Reuters Life!) - Pity the poor stepper.

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters Life!) - Thousands of Malaysian boys will begin the journey into adulthood at mass circumcision ceremonies that start this month throughout this mainly Muslim Southeast Asian nation.

BUDAPEST (Reuters) - Santa Claus should avoid kissing children and shaking their hands to prevent spreading the flu and should get vaccinated against the illness, Hungary's state health authority said.

TOKYO (Reuters Life!) - In the chaotic world after the Cold War and the September 11 2001 attacks, Japanese author Haruki Murakami says metaphors can be even more powerful than what's real -- a reason why his surreal books are read worldwide.

NEW YORK (Reuters Life!) - With the recession set to cut tips given to doormen, housekeepers, and other service providers this holiday, etiquette experts say it is time to reclaim the reason for tipping and actually say thank you.

LONDON (Reuters Life!) - Royal heirlooms from the collection of Prince George Duke of Kent, son of King George V, and his wife Princess Marina, fetched 2.1 million pounds ($3.5 million) at an auction late Friday, nearly double pre-sale estimates.

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Benedict met artists from around the world in the Sistine Chapel on Saturday and urged them to inject spirituality into their work, saying contemporary beauty was often "illusory and deceitful."

NEW YORK (Reuters Life!) - Audrey Hepburn once declared her look was "attainable" and an upcoming auction of some of the fashionable film star's wardrobe will make that possible.

TIRANA (Reuters) - The small Albanian town of Fushe-Kruje plans to erect a statue of former U.S. President George W. Bush to commemorate his June 2007 visit, when he was feted as a hero in an outpouring of love for America.

LONDON (Reuters Life!) - The most important treasure trove found in Britain for decades is on display at the British museum in London and will be the subject of two hot-ticket lectures and a drop-in talk by experts in the coming weeks.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters Life!) - Moviergoers who tuck into a medium popcorn and a soft drink could be eating the equivalent of three McDonald's quarter-pounder burgers topped with a dozen scoops of butter, according to a U.S. study.

TAIPEI (Reuters Life!) - Travelers to a tiny tropical island off Taiwan can soon expect the air quality to match the pristine marine attractions under an initiative to replace gasoline-powered vehicles with electric ones.

LONDON (Reuters Life!) - An epilepsy sufferer has courted controversy in Britain by creating a public performance in which she will attempt to bring on a seizure and allow the audience to film it on their mobile phones.

ZURICH (Reuters Life!) - Brazilian Romero Britto has created the 2010 edition of the Montreux Jazz Festival's poster, adding to a long list of striking images by famous artists that have made the posters desirable objects among collectors.

ROME (Reuters Life!) - Iraq's Zaha Hadid, one of the world's most acclaimed architects, has given this ancient city that normally shuns modern intrusions another controversial building -- a new museum dedicated to contemporary design.

CANBERRA (Reuters Life!) - Six wedding dresses, a didgeridoo, a toupee and a massage table are among thousands of items lost in Australia's mail system in the past year and now being sold for charity after nobody claimed them.

SINGAPORE (Reuters Life!) - It's been nearly a century since Mexico was ravaged by revolution but the social, political and religious ramifications of the conflict have been brought to life at an art exhibition thousands of miles away.

ROME (Reuters) - Roman Catholics should look beyond the divisive issue of ordaining women to see how much they share with the world's Anglicans and work toward greater Christian unity, the head of the Anglican Communion said on Thursday.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Irina Shabayeva won the sixth season of the fashion reality show "Project Runway" on Thursday in the conclusion of the hit cable series which was delayed for months by legal wrangling.