For Nibali, an Italian with the Astana team, the title cemented his status in an elite group of current riders considered capable of winning Grand Tours, along with Alberto Contador, Chris Froome and Bradley Wiggins.

Nibali took the overall leader's pink jersey after the seventh stage, never gave it up, and padded his lead by winning the final two mountain stages.

Rigoberto Uran of Colombia finished second overall and Cadel Evans of Australia, the 2011 Tour de France winner, was third, 4:43 and 5:52 behind Nibali, respectively.

The gunmen boarded the MT Matrix I some 40 nautical miles off the coast of Nigeria's Bayelsa state early Saturday morning, the officials said, taking a number of the crew hostage. It wasn't immediately known what happened to the rest of the crew. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity as the Nigerian government was not speaking publicly about the hijacking.

A military spokesman in the delta referred calls for comment Tuesday to Nigeria's navy. Commodore Kabir Aliyu, a navy spokesman, said there had been no report of a hijacking made to officials.

Some shippers in the region don't report hijackings publicly, out of fears of having their insurance premiums rise.

Telephone numbers for Pakistan's High Commission in Abuja, Nigeria's capital, could not be immediately connected Tuesday.

Nigerian naval authorities listed the ship as one of several allowed to bring subsidized gasoline into the country in May as part of a program costing the nation billions of dollars a year.

Naval officials listed the ship as being operated by a company called Integrated Shipping Services Nigeria Ltd. A telephone number for the company could not be immediately found. Other registries listed the ship as being operated by Val Oil Trading SA of Athens, Greece. A number for that company could not be immediately found. Officials at Matrix Energy Ltd., a Nigerian company listed as doing business with Val Oil Trading, did not immediately return a call for comment.

The Gulf of Guinea, which follows the continent's southward curve from Liberia past Nigeria to Gabon, has seen an escalation in violent pirate attacks from low-level armed robberies to hijackings and cargo thefts. London-based Lloyd's Market Association an umbrella group of insurers has listed Nigeria, neighboring Benin and nearby waters in the same risk category as Somalia, where two decades of war and anarchy have allowed piracy to flourish.

Oil tanker hijackings have happened more and more in recent months, with pirates stealing the fuel onboard, as opposed to kidnapping sailors for ransom. Estimates suggest pirates likely are able to make as much as a $2 million profit for offloading 3,000 tons of fuel. Foreign hostages still draw tens of thousands of dollars in ransoms, with nearly all released unharmed after their companies pay for their freedom.

The piracy and kidnappings have grown around Nigeria's oil delta, despite a 2009 government amnesty program for militants there.

___

Jon Gambrell can be reached at www.twitter.com/jongambrellAP .

"We sincerely apologize for the harm that was caused by the teachers and administrators who abused anyone during their years at Horace Mann School," wrote Board Chairman Steven Friedman and Head of School Thomas Kelly in the three-page letter. "These unconscionable betrayals of trust never should have happened."

The Bronx district attorney's office and the New York Police Department launched an investigation into allegations of abuse at the school after a New York Times Magazine article last summer that said the academy was plagued by teachers who sexually abused children in the 1970s.

Friday's letter apologizes for abuse by former teachers and administrators between 1962 and 1996.

In April, prosecutors said that while there was a systemic pattern of suspected sexual abuse at the Bronx school, the statute of limitations to prosecute them has expired.

In the letter Friday, Friedman and Kelly said the school had hired a private mediation firm which presented the board of trustees with impact statements from 31 individuals who described their abuse. They said settlements have been reached with "the great majority" of those individuals.

Additionally, Friedman and Kelly said the school's board would eliminate a board position of trustee emeritus and create an advisory board on student safety, which may include a victim of sexual abuse.

(Logo: )

WEDNESDAY, MAY 29: START THE PRESSES

Profile America Wednesday, May 29th. The nation's first daily newspaper, the Pennsylvania Evening Post, began publication this week in 1783, printed by Benjamin Towne in Philadelphia. Americans' hunger for news was such that by 1850, there were some 250 dailies. The number of newspapers peaked a hundred years ago, when there were 2,600 dailies published across the nation, with a circulation of over 24 million. Today, with increasing competition from the Internet, television, and radio, the number of daily newspapers in the U.S. has dropped to just under 1,400. In year 2000, there were almost 56 million daily subscribers. Within a decade, that number dropped by 10 million. You can find more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau, online at .

Sources: Historical Statistics of the United States: Colonial Times to 1970, p. 810Statistical Abstract of the United States 2012, t. 1135

Profile America is produced by the Center for New Media and Promotions of the U.S. Census Bureau. These daily features are available as produced segments, ready to air, on a monthly CD or on the Internet at(look for "Multimedia Gallery" by the "Newsroom" button).

SOURCE U.S. Census Bureau

Muehl died Sunday in Portugal, according to Daniele Roussel, the head of his archived works. In his statement Monday, Roussel did not provide the cause of death.

Muehl was a co-founder of the Vienna Actionism, a controversial art movement in the 1960s, and his works shocked audiences with their use of blood, excrement and the human body as materials.

He was convicted in 1991 of crimes including illicit drug use and sex with minors while heading a commune. He was imprisoned for nearly seven years.

Muehl apologized to his juvenile victims in 2010.

Richards, a star player earning $12 million this season, stayed on the ice with the extras Thursday during the morning skate. He then confirmed that Rangers coach John Tortorella had called to tell him he would be sitting out.

Kris Newbury and Micheal Haley replaced him and fellow fourth-line forward Arron Asham, who also sat out for the first time in the series that Boston led 3-0.

"I don't know if surprised is the right word for it," Richards said. "I'm disappointed."

Haley, who hadn't played since March 19, made his NHL postseason debut. Newbury was in the lineup for New York's playoff opener against Washington in the first round, but was scratched for the next nine games.

Newbury played six games during the regular season, and Haley dressed for nine.

Defenseman Anton Stralman, who was injured in the second period of Tuesday night's loss, was also out of the Game 4 lineup. Veteran Roman Hamrlik, who hadn't played since April 1 a 23-game span replaced him. Hamrlik was paired with John Moore for the first time.

Boston used the same lineup from Game 3.

The 33-year-old Richards, an alternate captain who has seven years left on the nine-year, $60 million deal he signed in July 2011, has been largely ineffective in 10 playoff games. He has one goal and no assists and has a minus-3 rating.

He had already been dropped to the fourth line and had his ice time cut. Richards' inability to get New York's woeful power play going left him as an odd-man out. He said being on the fourth line made it difficult for him to be effective.

Richards, in his 12th NHL season, had only 10 shifts and a career playoff-low 8:10 of ice time Tuesday in New York's 2-1 loss that put the Rangers on the brink of elimination.

Richards is a prime candidate to have his contract bought out after this season. After this year's lockout, each team was given the option of two amnesty buyouts that could be used to terminate contracts before next season or the 2014-15 season.

The buyouts will cost two-thirds of the remaining amount on a deal paid evenly over twice its remaining length and will count against the players' overall share in revenues, but not the individual team's salary cap. A buyout for Richards would cost the Rangers $24 million over 14 years.

"Nothing's over," Richards said. "Work harder and try my best to never let it happen again."

Richards, who had 11 goals and 23 assists in 46 games during the regular season, was the Conn Smythe Trophy winner as playoff MVP when he and the Tampa Bay Lightning captured the Stanley Cup under Tortorella in 2004.

The symposium also included discussions about , the sun and past, present and future space missions.

John Grunsfeld, Associate Administrator for NASAs Science Mission Directorate, said that the upcomingwill be able to make important observations of the atmospheres of exoplanets. []

He said JWST wont be able to locate the exoplanets, only study them, but the recently selectedcould act as a planet scout for JWST targets. It is estimated that TESS will discover around 300 "super-Earth" alien planets, many of them in the habitable zone.

But the number one challenge, Grunsfeld noted, is figuring out the .

Z STREET filed a lawsuit in 2010, claiming the organization's attorney was told by an IRS agent that their tax exempt status application had to undergo additional scrutiny since their organization was "connected to Israel."

The Z STREET attorney was also informed that groups supportive of Israel and that filed for tax exempt status were assigned to "a special unit in the D.C. office to determine whether the organization's activities contradict the Administration's public policies."

Lori Lowenthal Marcus, president of the pro-Israel group, appeared on the Glenn Beck Program to discuss her experience with the IRS.

"They asked a lot of questions about the board members and their affiliations," Marcus said before adding that the IRS agents asked the questions repeatedly.

According to Marcus, the IRS agent assigned to their case in 2010 told Z STREET's lawyer that they had to scrutinize their organization more carefully due to its ties with Israel.

The Jewish Press reported that at least one other Jewish religious organization claims it also endured a bizarre string ofquestioningby the IRS, saying it was asked "whether [it] supports the existence of the land of Israel" and for the organization to "describe [its] religious belief system toward the land of Israel."

Z STREET's first hearing on the lawsuit is scheduled for July 2 in Washington, D.C..

The new Hubble telescope images have allowed astronomers to take their most detailed look at thethan ever before, revealing an unprecedented view of the nebula's three-dimensional structure.

"The nebula is not like a bagel, but rather, it's like a jelly doughnut, because it's filled with material in the middle," study leader C. Robert O'Dell, an astronomer with Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn., said in a statement today (May 23).

When people cut in front of an RV or a large truck and slam on their brakes, it puts many people's lives in danger. There is a reason we leave that large space between our RV and the vehicle in front of us. It provides us room to stop as well as the ability to see what's happening in the traffic ahead.

Your readers should also know that even though we RV-ers have mirrors and possibly rear video cameras, there are many blind spots -- especially if the car behind us is following too close or weaving in and out of lanes.

The bottom line is: Be safe. Be courteous. Drive like your life and the lives of others are in your control because it is literally true. -- HAPPY CAMPER, PASCO, WASH.

DEAR HAPPY CAMPER: I'm glad you wrote because I have received several letters recently, asking me to alert my readers about the risk of driving too close to RVs and fifth-wheel vehicles. Too many motorists don't realize that it's impossible to stop suddenly while pulling a load that weighs several tons. A word to the wise ...

DEAR ABBY: A woman here at work constantly asks to borrow money. The first time she did it, she caught me off guard and I gave her $20. The second time she sent me an email asking for a loan, I replied that I only had a few dollars.

I'm not the only person she asks. Five other people in our department have told me she has hit them up too. One of them reported her to our HR manager, but it hasn't stopped her. To be fair, she did return the $20 I loaned her, but isn't this akin to a hostile work environment?

We all avoid her because we know she'll ask for money, but we also have to work with her every day. Times are tough for everyone, and it's irritating that she thinks she's the only one with money problems.

Is there anything we can do short of ganging up on her and telling her to leave us all alone? -- ALSO FEELING THE PINCH IN UTAH

DEAR ALSO FEELING THE PINCH: The next time the woman asks for a loan, tell her you're not in the loan business, and that you're not the only one who feels put upon. Suggest that unless she wants to become an outcast she will stop asking for money because it has made everyone uncomfortable. If she persists after that, report what she's doing to HR as a group.

DEAR ABBY: I have a friend who was raised Catholic. I'm not Catholic, and every time I attend a wedding or funeral for one of her family members I feel uncomfortable and awkward. I often sit in the very back pew to go unnoticed.

The Catholic Church offers beautiful, unique customs that I am simply ignorant about -- like when to sit, kneel, recite, take bread, etc. I feel if I don't comply with customs at these events, I might come off as rude or disrespectful. On the other hand, if I do try, my ignorance may appear just as rude and disrespectful.

What is the right thing to do in situations like these? I want to be respectful of any religion. -- MANNERLY IN INDIANA

DEAR MANNERLY: No rule of etiquette demands that you participate in the rituals of another person's religion. If you feel uncomfortable sitting while others kneel or stand, then follow their lead. Or, continue to sit quietly at the back of the church as you are doing, which is perfectly acceptable. However, only members of the congregation in good standing should take communion.

Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Write Dear Abby ator P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.

To receive a collection of Abby's most memorable -- and most frequently requested -- poems and essays, send your name and mailing address, plus check or money order for $7 (U.S. funds) to: Dear Abby -- Keepers Booklet, P.O. Box 447, Mount Morris, IL 61054-0447. Shipping and handling are included in the price.