Epecuen was once a bustling little lakeside resort, where 1,500 people served 20,000 tourists a season. During Argentina's golden age, the same trains that carried grain to the outside world brought visitors from the capital to relax in Epecuen's saltwater baths and spas.

The saltwater lake was particularly attractive because it has 10 times more salt than the ocean, making the water buoyant. Tourists, especially people from Buenos Aires' large Jewish community, enjoyed floating in water that reminded them of the Dead Sea in the Middle East.

Then a particularly heavy rainstorm followed a series of wet winters, and the lake overflowed its banks on Nov. 10, 1985. Water burst through a retaining wall and spilled into the lakeside streets. People fled with what they could, and within days their homes were submerged under nearly 10 meters (33 feet) of corrosive saltwater.

Now the water has mostly receded, exposing what looks like a scene from a movie about the end of the world. The town hasn't been rebuilt, but it has become a tourist destination again, for people willing to drive at least six hours from Buenos Aires to get here, along 340 miles (550 kilometers) of narrow country roads.

People come to see the rusted hulks of automobiles and furniture, crumbled homes and broken appliances. They climb staircases that lead nowhere, and wander through a graveyard where the water toppled headstones and exposed tombs to the elements.

It's a bizarre, post-apocalyptic landscape that captures a traumatic moment in time.

One man refused to leave. Pablo Novak, now 82, still lives on the edge of the town, welcoming people who wander into the wrecked streets.

"Whoever passes nearby cannot go without coming to visit here," Novak said while showing The Associated Press around. "It's getting more people to the area, as they come to see the ruins."

Many residents of Epecuen fled to nearby Carhue, another lakeside town, and built new hotels and spas, promising relaxing getaways featuring saltwater and mud facials.

"Not only do we have Epecuen with the ruins and its natural wealth, but we also can increasingly offer other alternatives," said Javier Andres, the local tourism director.

Whishaw, 32, who is currently performing with Judi Dench in London's West End theatre district, won the award for playing Richard II in a TV film based on William Shakespeare's play that was commissioned by Britain's public broacaster, the BBC.

"I'm really, really surprised. I was just hoping it would be one of the others just so I wouldn't have to come up here and say anything," Whishaw, the gadget guy Q in "Skyfall", told a star-studded ceremony at London's Royal Festival Hall.

The award for best actress at the British Academy Television Awards went to Sheridan Smith for playing the wife of the great train robber Ronnie Biggs in ITV's "Mrs Biggs".

She beat the bookmaker's favorite Sienna Miller, nominated for playing the American actress Tippi Hedren with whom Alfred Hitchcock was said to be obsessed, in the drama "The Girl" co-produced by the BBC and Time Warner's HBO.

The biggest winner of the night was the BBC comedy program "Twenty Twelve" about organizers of the 2012 Olympics, which won best situation comedy and nabbed the award for best female in a comedy program for actress Olivia Colman.

Colman also won best supporting actress for "Accused".

Another Olympic show, "The London 2012 Paralympic Games" on Channel 4, won the prize for best sport and live event.

The prize for best single drama went to "Murder" by Danish director Birger Larsen who also made the hit Nordic TV thriller "The Killing", while the best drama went to "Last Tango in Halifax" about teenage sweethearts reunited 60 years on.

HBO show "Girls", a comedy-drama about a group of 20-somethings in New York, won the international award, beating the Danish crime drama "The Bridge", the post 9/11 psychological drama "Homeland", and fantasy epic "Game of Thrones".

But "Game of Thrones" was the public's favorite, winning the Radio Times Audience Award voted for by the public.

Film and TV star Michael Palin, who made his name as a founder of comedy group Monty Python, was presented with an Academy Fellowship while the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) also used the occasion to pay tribute to the BBC series "Dr. Who", which turns 50 this year.

Following is a list of the major BAFTA TV awards, sponsored by Arqiva:

- Leading Actor: Ben Whishaw

- Leading Actress: Sheridan Smith

- Supporting Actor: Simon Russell Beale

- Supporting Actress: Olivia Colman

- Drama Series: Last Tango in Halifax

- International: Girls

- Current Affairs: The Shame of the Catholic Church

- Sport & Live Event: The London 2012 Paralympic Games

- Situation Comedy: Twenty Twelve

- Radio Times Audience Award (voted by the public): Game of Thrones

(Reporting by Belinda Goldsmith; editing by Andrew Roche)

The FDA has regulated tanning beds and sun lamps for over 30 years, but for the first time ever the agency says those devices should not be used by people under age 18. The agency wants that warning on pamphlets, catalogues and websites that promote indoor tanning. And regulators are also proposing that manufacturers meet certain safety and design requirements, including timers and limits on radiation emitted.

The government action is aimed at curbing cases of melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, which have been on the rise for about 30 years. An estimated 2.3 million U.S. teenagers tan indoors each year, and melanoma is the second most common form of cancer among young adults, according to the American Academy of Dermatology.

Recent studies have shown that the risk of melanoma is 75 percent higher in people who have been exposed to ultraviolet radiation from indoor tanning. While most cases are diagnosed in people in their 40s and 50s, the disease is linked to sun exposure at a young age.

Physician groups have been urging the U.S. government to take action on tanning beds for years, citing increases in the number of cases of skin cancer among people in their teens and 20s.

"As a dermatologist I see the consequences of indoor tanning. I have to diagnose too many young people with melanoma and see the grief that it causes to these families," said Dr. Mary Maloney of the American Academy of Dermatology, on a call with FDA officials. Maloney said the FDA action is an important first step, but that her group would continue to push for a ban on the sale and use of tanning beds for people under age 18.

Earlier this year, a study of Missouri tanning salons found that 65 percent of 250 businesses surveyed would accept children ages 10 to 12, often without parental permission. The study was conducted by dermatologists at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

Currently the machines are classified as low-risk devices, in the same group as bandages and tongue depressors. The proposal would increase their classification to moderate-risk, or class II, devices. That would allow the FDA to review their safety and design before manufacturers begin selling them.

"They don't have to provide any data in advance before they go on the market, so we have no way of providing assurance that the tanning beds are performing up to specifications," said Dr. Jeffrey Shuren, FDA's director for medical devices.

Safety standards are important because recent studies show that many devices can cause sunburn even when used as directed. A 2009 study found that 58 percent of adolescents who tan indoors had sunburn exposure.

"If you get an indoor tan you shouldn't be burning," Shuren said.

The Indoor Tanning Association said it supported any changes that improve its customers' safety. But, in a statement, the group added that "we are concerned that these changes will burden our members with addition unnecessary governmental costs in an already difficult economic climate."

The FDA proposal would not place warnings on the devices themselves, but on related promotional material and websites. Some consumer advocates said those warnings might never actually reach users.

"The FDA is requiring that the labels and pamphlets include risk information about skin cancer, but consumers would not be required to see those labels or pamphlets they are apparently only for the company buying the tanning bed," said Diana Zuckerman, of the National Research Center for Women and Families.

The agency said it will take comments on its proposal for 90 days before formulating a final regulation. Agency officials didn't give a timeframe for completion, but said it would be a priority.

In her appearance on , Polly shares her own story of overcoming physical adversity through turning to spiritual and emotional development. She warns against falling into the "perfect trap" and expands upon the idea of perfection in imperfection. Campbell also delivers a timely message of how to deal with feelings of stress and anxiety in the wake of tragedy (like the Boston Marathon bombing). She suggests that creative endeavors, as well as simply breathing mindfully, can make a powerful difference in stress levels.

Polly Campbell is a professional speaker who specializes in personal development and spiritual topics. A blogger at ImperfectSpirituality.com and PsychologyToday.com, she teaches on the Daily Om as well. For more than two decades, Polly has studied and applied the techniques she writes and speaks about to her own life. She lives with her family in Beaverton, Oregon.

Brenda KnightCleis Press, INC510-845-8000

Freddie Mac said Thursday that the average on the 30-year home loan increased to 3.95 percent from 3.91 percent. Last week's rate was the lowest average on records dating to the 1950s.

The average on the 15-year fixed mortgage rose to 3.24 percent. That's up from 3.21 percent, also a record low.

Rates have been below 5 percent for all but two weeks in 2011. Even so, this year is shaping up to be one of the worst ever for home sales.

Previously occupied homes are selling just slightly ahead of last year's dismal pace. And new-home sales appear headed for their worst year on records going back half a century.

Next year could be better. More than 5 percent of households said this month they plan to purchase a home within the next six months, according to the Conference Board.

Builders are also hopeful that the low rates could boost sales next year. Low mortgage rates were cited as a key reason the National Association of Home Builders survey of builder sentiment rose in December to its highest level in more than a year.

But so far, rates are having no major impact. Mortgage applications have fallen slightly in recent weeks, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

High unemployment and scant wage gains have made it harder for many people to qualify for loans. Many Americans don't want to sink money into a home that they fear could lose value over the next few years.

To calculate the average rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country Monday through Wednesday of each week. The average rates don't include extra fees, known as points, which most borrowers must pay to get the lowest rates. One point equals 1 percent of the loan amount.

The average fee for the 30-year loan was unchanged at 0.7; the average on the 15-year fixed mortgage was unchanged at 0.8.

For the five-year adjustable loan, the average rate rose to 2.88 percent from 2.85 percent. The average on the one-year adjustable loan ticked up to 2.78 percent from 2.77 percent.

The average fees on the five- and one-year adjustable-rate loans were unchanged at 0.6.

TOKYO (Reuters) - Super Mario creator Nintendo Co Ltd forecast a return to the black after two years of losses and camera maker Canon Inc raised its profit forecast by nearly 10 percent as a weaker yen, spurred by aggressive deflation-fighting policies, bolstered the outlook of Japan's tech companies.

The two companies, however, show no sign of reciprocating the government's helping hand with fresh job-creating investment. Canon, still worried about a struggling global economy, pared its capital expenditure.

As the first blue-chip Japanese tech companies to report quarterly results, Nintendo and Canon are often seen as a barometer for the sector's earnings. The tech sector directly employs around 2 million workers in Japan.

"We welcome Abenomics," Canon Chief Financial Officer Toshizo Tanaka said at a news briefing, acknowledging the impact of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's economic stimulus policies.

"The Japanese economy moves on this kind of mood so we value this and hope to find success," he added.

At Canon, a weakening yen is helping to compensate for a squeeze on compact camera sales as consumers switch to photo snapping on their smartphones. And the softer Japanese currency may buy Nintendo more time to plug its Wii game console successor, the Wii U, which has disappointed with dull sales as it also competes with smartphones and tablets.

For the business year to December 31, Canon, which relies on foreign markets for four-fifths of its sales, lifted its operating profit forecast to 450 billion yen ($4.53 billion).

Nintendo, which generates three-quarters of its revenue abroad, forecast an operating profit of 100 billion yen after two years of losses as its Wii boom ebbed.

Canon raised its forecast dollar rate for the year to 95 yen compared with the 85 yen forecast issued just three months earlier.

Nintendo estimated a rate of 90 yen to the dollar for the year to next March. Its president, Satoru Iwata, told a news briefing in Osaka that the figure was "conservative".

Nintendo sold 3.45 million Wii U consoles from its November launch until March 31, far below the 5.5 million it initially predicted. For this business year, it is aiming to sell 9 million.

LONG-HELD WISH

For Japanese business leaders worried about their ability to compete globally, particularly against South Korean rivals such as Samsung Electronics Co Ltd and LG Electronics Inc, the yen decline fulfils a long-held wish.

Fabricating goods worth almost $400 billion a year, Japanese makers of TVs, mobile phones, printers and personal computers account for a sizeable chunk of Japan's $5 trillion economy.

Canon's operating profit in the first quarter dipped 34 percent to $552 million, which the company blamed on a weakened global economy and the hit to its compact camera business from smartphones. Nintendo posted a full-year operating loss of 36.4 billion yen.

Corporate heads who have praised Abenomics include Sony Corp CEO Kazuo Hirai. His company and other Japanese TV makers, Panasonic Corp and Sharp Corp, have struggled to fend off competition from Samsung Electronics as a strong yen bit into profits.

Sony, with its bigger exposure to overseas markets, is the best-placed among TV makers to gain from a weaker yen, particularly versus the euro. A 1 yen drop against the European single currency adds about 6 billion yen to operating profit at the maker of Bravia sets.

At Panasonic, a 1 yen weakening against the euro boosts operating profit by 2 billion yen, while it reaps a 2.5 billion yen gain for declines against the dollar. At Sharp, which more heavily relies on its home market, a 1 yen move is worth around 500 million yen in operating profit against the euro and 700 million yen against the dollar.

More than a third of Japanese companies remain worried about domestic demand stagnating, a Reuters survey of 240 companies released on Friday shows. A quarter said they were likely to increase output in Japan because of the weaker yen.

On balance, however, Wednesday's results produced no signs that Abenomics was encouraging a boost in capital spending.

Canon, which stands to benefit more than most Japanese companies from a weak yen, on Wednesday trimmed its capital expenditure for the business year to 265 billion yen from 270 billion yen.

"Dramatic monetary easing has prompted a revision of the strong yen, but there are still uncertainties surrounding the U.S. budget problems and European debt issues," Tanaka cautioned.

Since mid-November, when an Abenomics-driven stock rally began, Canon's shares have gained 58 percent, in line with a 60 percent gain in the Nikkei 225 benchmark index. Its stock rose 1.3 percent in Tokyo to 3,840 yen on Wednesday.

Nintendo, which has gained 17 percent since November, rose 4.6 percent to 11,950 yen. Quarterly results for both companies were released after the close of trading.

($1 = 99.3600 Japanese yen)

(Editing by Daniel Magnowski and Edmund Klamann)

The increase is the result of the government last year lowering the threshold for lead poisoning, so now more children are considered at risk.

Too much lead can harm developing brains and can mean a lower IQ. Lead poisoning used to be a much larger concern in the United States, but has declined significantly as lead was removed from paint and gasoline and other sources.

The new number translates to about 1 in 38 young children. That estimate suggests a need for more testing and preventive measures, some experts said, but budget cuts last year eliminated federal grant funding for such programs.

Those cuts represent "an abandonment of children," said David Rosner, a Columbia University public health historian who writes books about lead poisoning.

"We've been acting like the problem was solved and thiswas a thing ofthe past," he added.

Lead can harm a child's brain, kidneys and other organs. High levels in the blood can cause coma, convulsions and death. Lower levels can reduce intelligence, impair hearing and behavior and cause other problems.

Most cases of lead poisoning are handled by tracking and removing the lead source, and monitoring the children to make sure lead levels stay down. A special treatment to remove lead and other heavy metals is used only for extremely high levels.

Often, children who get lead poisoning live in old homes that are dilapidated or under renovation. They pick up paint chips or dust and put it in their mouth. Other sources include soil contaminated by old leaded gasoline, dust from industrial worksites and tainted drinking water

Lead has been banned in household paint since 1978 and was gone from gasoline by the late 1980s.

After lowering the standard, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention went back and looked at old blood tests from 1,653 children under 6 to determine how many would have lead poisoning under the new definition.

About 3 percent of them or about 50 kids had blood lead levels higher than the new threshold of 5 micrograms of lead per deciliter of blood. Using that result, CDC officials calculated that an estimated 535,000 young children have lead poisoning.

A year ago, when the threshold was 10 micrograms, experts estimated that somewhere between 77,000 and 255,000 young kids had high levels of lead.

These estimates have focused on children younger than 6, who have been considered most at risk of neurological problems due to lead.

Overall, the new CDC study found lead counts were higher on average in children who were poor or African-American, said the CDC's Mary Jean Brown, an author of the study.

Those kids are more likely to live in old housing or in neighborhoods with greater exposure to lead, she added.

The good news: Even with the lower threshold, lead poisoning appears to still be declining. Years ago, some local health departments began tracking the number of kids with blood levels at 5 or greater, and they say those numbers have been dropping steadily.

However, it's likely that many children with lead poisoning have not been diagnosed. In the CDC study, elevated lead levels were discovered for a third of the children only when they were tested by researchers.

"When you look for it, you find it," Columbia's Rosner said.

Once lead poisoning is diagnosed, doctors often refer parents to local health departments to get their homes checked out to try to find the source of the problem. But as demand for investigations grows, there's less money to pay for them. Congress last year cut CDC lead program's budget from about $29 million to $2 million. That ended CDC grants to local health departments for their programs.

Detroit's lead program was all but eliminated because of the federal cut and state and local funding problems, said Bob Scott of Michigan's lead poisoning prevention program.

Other places are struggling to keep up with lead work at the same time they are cutting staff. The Cleveland area has been aggressive about lead poisoning prevention but the loss of CDC funding hurt those efforts.

For example, Cuyahoga County which includes Cleveland saw its staff for blood testing of children and public education drop from 2 1/2 positions to 1.

"It's unsustainable," said Terry Allan, the county's health commissioner.

____

Online:

CDC report: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr

The tour operators’ latest range aims to inspire customers to take a break away this bank holiday and is providing a range of , coastal retreats and experience packages to reach out to a range of ages and interests. In response to the 45 per cent increase in visits to its May Bank holiday page over the past six weeks, Superbreak continues to put customers at the heart of its product offering with the focus for this year on added value offers.

Whether customers want to explore the best of the British countryside with dinner, afternoon tea and attraction ticket, experience London with a Harrods Champagne Tea & Tour break or jet off to Paris and enjoy a free Seine river cruise, the tour operator’s range of extras continues to offer customers access to new destinations and cultures regardless of budget.

Superbreak are also delighted to offer a range of newer range of experience packages for 2013, which include three star family hotel breaks with free BeWILDerwood forest adventure tickets, four star wine tasting tours at the Denbies Wine Estate, Ballroom dancing breaks in Manchester and Peak District stays with Chatsworth House tickets with dinner included.

Last year, online sales for the May bank holiday weekend included popular UK break destinations such as Edinburgh, London, York and Stratford-upon-Avon. Booking trends for 2013 show a far great mix of both UK and European destinations, with online revenue growth reported across Paris and Amsterdam, as well as smaller UK cities including Newcastle and Harrogate.

Khalid Amin, Online Marketing Manager at Superbreak, commented: "This May Bank Holiday, we’ve seen our customers continue to search for great value packages allowing them to save both time and money in their quest for the perfect Bank Holiday package. This search for value is also extending into Europe with our Eurostar Breaks with a free Seine River cruise proving particularly popular this Spring."

About Superbreak:

Superbreak is the internet division of Superbreak Mini Holidays Limited, the market leader for short breaks and hotels throughout the UK and beyond, including hotels in Manchester and London to Paris and even Dubai. Superbreak is part of Holiday Break plc. Based in York, England, Superbreak specialises in booking city breaks in two-five star hotel accommodation throughout Britain for the leisure traveller. Superbreak also work with various travel providers offering a range of , P&O mini cruise breaks, flights and more.

With 5000 plus hotel partners in worldwide locations from Manchester to Brighton, from London to Paris and with great availability and rates for theatre breaks, events at the O2 Arena, various popular attractions and national and international rail partners, Superbreak can offer an outstanding depth and breadth of UK and Overseas short break products.

We authorise the republication of this content with the condition that a link to Superbreak is included: .

Khalid AminSuperbreak0871 221 3344

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian Federal Police have arrested the self-proclaimed leader of the international hacking group LulzSec, the collective that claimed responsibility for infiltrating and shutting down the CIA website.

Police said the 24-year-old IT worker, who held a position of trust at an international company, was arrested in Sydney on Tuesday evening and charged with hacking offences that carry a maximum penalty of 10 years.

Glen McEwen, manager of cyber crime operations at Australian Federal Police, said the man was detained at work, where he had access to sensitive information from clients including government agencies.

LulzSec, an offshoot of the international hacking group Anonymous, has taken credit for hacking attacks on government and private sector websites, including the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Sony Pictures, a unit of Sony Corp, 20th Century Fox and Nintendo.

Anonymous - and LulzSec in particular - became notorious in late 2010 when they launched what they called the "first cyber war" in retaliation for attempts to shut down the Wikileaks website.

The name LulzSec is a combination of "lulz", another way of writing "lols" or "laugh out loud", and security.

Australian police said the unnamed Australian man, who used the online moniker "Aush0k", was known to international law authorities.

His arrest comes a week after an American member of LulzSec, Cody Kretsinger, was sentenced in a Los Angeles court to a year in prison followed by home detention. Kretsinger, who used the online handle "Recursion", pleaded guilty in a plea agreement with prosecutors.

Court documents in that case revealed that Anonymous leader "Sabu", whose real name is Hector Xavier Monsegur, had provided the FBI with information on fellow hackers after pleading guilty to hacking offences.

The Australian hacker has been charged with two counts of unauthorized modification of data to cause impairment and one count of unauthorized access to a restricted data system after a government website was attacked earlier this month.

"Let me make it extremely clear to everybody out there, this is not harmless fun, this is serious," McEwen said at a press conference.

McEwen said the man posted in online forums frequented by other members of LulzSec that he was the group's leader.

"There were no denials of his claims of being the leader," McEwen told reporters.

The man has been granted bail and will appear before a court next month.

LulzSec allegedly broke into Australian government department and university websites in 2011. Anonymous last year took around 10 Australian government websites offline, protesting plans to force ISPs to store more user data and make it available to security services.

(Additional reporting by Michael Sin; Editing by Paul Tait and Jeremy Laurence)

These findings add to evidence that the hobbit was a unique species of humans after all, not a deformed modern human, scientists added.

The 18,000-year-old fossils of the extinct type of human officially known aswere first discovered on the remote Indonesian island of Flores in 2003. Its squat, 3-foot-tall (1 meter) build led to the hobbit nickname. []

Scientists had suggested the hobbit was a unique branch of the human lineage Homo. It may have descended from , the earliest undisputed ancestor of modern humans, or an even more primitive extinct species of human, Homo habilis, which had a more apelike skeleton. However, other researchers have argued it was unlikely another species of human lasted so close to the present day, and that the hobbit was really , a condition that leads to an abnormally small head, a small body and some mental retardation.

Big brains?

One method that may help solve the mystery of the hobbit's status involves comparing the size of its brain with the size of its body. Scientists could then make similar comparisons with modern and extinct human groups and note the hobbit's differences from the groups. However, the actual size ofwas unclear past estimates for its size ranged from 380 to 430 cubic centimeters (23 to 26 cubic inches), inviting confusing answers when it came to analyzing the hobbit.

To help resolve this question, researchers scanned the interior of the only known hobbit skull with a high-resolution CT scan for the first time. They found the hobbit's brain was larger than previously suggested 426 cubic cm (nearly 26 cubic inches), instead of the commonly cited figure of 400 cubic cm. (Theis 1,300 cubic centimeters, or 79 cubic inches, large on average.)

Armed with this knowledge, the scientists then compared the hobbit with other groups of humans. Past studies had argued the hobbit could not have evolved from Homo erectus, which typically had a brain about 1,000 cubic centimeters (61 cubic inches) in size, because it would have suggested Homo erectus shrunk an unreasonable degree over time. However, it turned out Javanese specimens of Homo erectus had brains about 860 cubic cm (52 cubic inches) large, and combined with the newfound increased size of the hobbit's brain, the researchers say it now seems possible that Homo erectus may be the ancestor of Homo floresiensis.

"This study does not prove who was the actual ancestral species for Homo floresiensis, but it has removed the most important concern for the model, which supposes Homo erectus was the ancestral species," researcher Yousuke Kaifu, a paleoanthropologist at Japan's National Museum of Nature and Science in Tokyo, told LiveScience.

Hobbit ancestor alternative

Another possibility is that the hobbit evolved from Homo habilis, whose brains were only about 600 cubic cm (37 cubic inches).

"Homo habilis could also be the ancestor, but this model still has the problem that no fossil record exists for the presence of such a primitive form of hominin in Asia," Kaifu said. Hominins include modern andand their direct ancestors.

While the human lineage is ordinarily typified by increases in brain and body size, Homo floresiensis suggests this trend may go the opposite direction in special circumstances, such as when on islands. Many , including mammoths and dinosaurs.

Future research will hopefully uncover more ancient human fossils on the island of Flores.

"New discovery of older hominin remains from Flores would provide us with fresh materials to solve the evolutionary questions of Homo floresiensis," Kaifu said.

Kaifu and his colleagues Daisuke Kubo and Reiko Kono detailed their findings online April 17 in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

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