North America
Wilmington
His workshops in Moscow and St. Petersburg produced jewel-encrusted trinkets and fashion accessories for the European and Asian nobility. But Peter Carl Faberg's (1846-1920) highest-profile creations remain the 56 eggs he created for the Russian Imperial Court. Ten of the intricately designed, surprise-bearing eggs (a singing bird, a tiny gold train), commissioned by Tsar Alexander III and his successor Nicholas II as Easter gifts or to commemorate royal events, form the centerpiece of "Faberg," at the Riverfront Arts Center in Wilmington, Delaware. Also featured in the 1,100-piece exhibition are jewelery, decorative boxes, clocks and tableware by Faberg and such contemporaries as American Louis Tiffany and Frenchman Louis Cartier. Through Feb. 20.
Europe
London
A new test for the endurance-boosting hormone erythropoietin (epo) is one of a range of checks helping to weed out cheats at the Sydney Olympics. Find out how the test was developed by Australian and European researchers at an exhibition on drugs and sport in the recently opened Wellcome Wing of London's Science Museum. The 10,000-sq.-m addition has four floors of galleries devoted to scientific topics. Visitors can see equipment used for the Human Genome Project in "Who Am I," examine under-water robots that mimic the tricks of sea creatures in "Antenna," and compose music and manipulate their voices in "Digitopolis."
Asia
Beijing
A 30-m-high bungee jump may prove a welcome diversion for the Chinese capital's entertainment-hungry middle class. Not so thrilled, however, are the congregation of a Catholic church across the street, who don't want their services punctuated by the shrieks of jumpers when the ride opens next month. Built on Beijing's premier shopping street, Wangfujing-which is being transformed into a traffic-free zone in a $41 million development project-the jump consists of two crane-like towers which drop cages seating up to three people over the heads of shoppers.
Uttar Pradesh
India's northern state of Uttar Pradesh hopes to boost tourism by offering to help expatriate Indians trace their family origins. The "Discover Your Roots" scheme, run by the state's tourism department, will try to identify the birthplaces of ancestors and locate "lost" living family members once applicants provide details about themselves and their forefathers. Documents such as old passports, letters or school diplomas, or clothes "carrying the tag of the tailor," are also considered helpful. For more information and application forms, see www.up-tourism. com/rootmain.htm.