TORONTO, May 9 (Reuters) - There is little room for panic in the National Hockey League (NHL) playoffs and the battle-hardened Boston Bruins are showing just how valuable experience is as they chase a second Stanley Cup in three seasons.

The Bruins fell into an early hole during a pivotal road game against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday but battledback for an exhilarating 4-3 overtime victory that gave the visitors a 3-1 stranglehold in the best-of-seven series.

"It's not how you start, it's how you finish," Bruins captain Zdeno Chara, who had four assists, told reporters.

"It's a 60-minute game, and sometimes more than that, so all of us kind've tried to put that first 20 minutes behind us and focus on the next period and go from there."

The Maple Leafs, in the playoffs for the first time in nine years and desperately trying to square the first-round series, jumped out to a 2-0 lead with a pair of first-period goals.

But the Bruins stormed back with a three-goal second period and, after allowing a Toronto goal with under three minutes to play in the middle frame, entered the third period tied 3-3.

Before the game, the Bruins roster had 1,330 games of NHL playoff experience, including five players with more than 100each. By contrast, the three Maple Leafs with the most playoff experience had played a combined 121 games.

The contrast in experience was clearly evident during the late stages. Boston never panicked even as the Maple Leafs pressed for the go-ahead goal, only to be denied time and time again by Finnish goalie Tuukka Rask.

"We know we have so much experience on this team, but it's how you use that experience that is important," Bruins forward David Krejci told reporters after scoring the overtime winner to complete his hat trick.

"I think we used it well tonight, but Tuukka also made some great saves. If it wasn't for him, we wouldn't have even been in overtime."

For the Bruins, the win means they can avoid a trip back to Toronto for a Game Six with a win at home on Friday that would put them in the Eastern Conference semi-final for the first time since winning the Stanley Cup in 2011.

This season marks the sixth consecutive year the Bruins are in the playoffs, the franchise's longest stretch since their NHL-record span of 29 consecutive seasons from 1968-1996.

The Bruins' experience was not lost on the Maple Leafs, a team that does not have history on its side with Boston owning a 15-2 record when leading a best-of-seven series 3-1.

"There is obviously a bit of a learning curve," Toronto forward Joffrey Lupul, who opened the scoring less than three minutes into the game, told reporters. "In the playoffs the more experienced guys tend to have a little bit of an advantage but that's not an excuse at all." (Editing by Julian Linden)

Daft Punk's "Get Lucky", featuring the guest vocals of Pharrell Williams and Nile Rodgers on guitar, had entered the chart three weeks ago at No.3.

The track is the lead single from the pair's upcoming fourth album "Random Access Memories" and is their third biggest hit behind "One More Time" (2000) and "Around The World" (1997).

"Can't Hold Us" by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis featuring Ray Dalton moved up two places to third spot, according to the Official Charts Company.

In the album charts, "Home" - the debut studio album by Rudimental - went straight to No.1 in its first week, knocking Canadian crooner Michael Buble's "To Be Loved" down into second place after two weeks at the top.

American singer Pink was up one place, to third spot, with her sixth studio album "The Truth About Love".

(Reporting by Stephen Addison; Editing by Pravin Char)

Bright white clouds fade into darkness northeast of Australia in theimage, which was taken by NASA's Terra spacecraft at 7:30 p.m. EDT (2330 GMT) Thursday (May 9), space agency officials said.

The first solar eclipse of 2013Friday (May 10) for observers in northern Australia, eastern Papua New Guinea and other parts of the Pacific. Because this region is on the other side of the International Dateline, it was Thursday (May 9) in the U.S. during the eclipse. The moon passed directly in front of our star but didn't block it out completely, leaving a bright ring of light around the edges.

Such events are also called annular solar eclipses, from the Latin "annulus," which means "little ring." It was the second solar eclipse in less than six months for northern Australia, which was treated to a total eclipse in November.

The shadow path from which the "ring of fire" could be seen Thursday was long but slender, measuring no more than 107 miles (172 kilometers) across at its widest point. But a larger chunk of the planet including the rest of Australia, most of New Zealand and many islands throughout the Pacific witnessed a partial eclipse.

In fact, observers with good weather in Hawaii could see the moon reach almost halfway across the sun's disk. The eclipse was not visible from any other U.S. state.

NASA's Terra satellite has been observing Earth for more than a decade. The spacecraft, which launched in December 1999, uses five sensors to study the planet's climate and map the impact of human activity on ecosystems around the globe.

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The federal government says the judge who issued the ruling had exceeded his authority and that his decision should be suspended while the appeal is underway.

U.S. District Judge Edward Korman of New York had given the Food and Drug Administration until Monday to lift all age limits on Plan B and cheaper generic. The judge mandated that emergency contraception be sold just like aspirin.

On Tuesday, the FDA said anyone 15 or older could begin buying one brand, Plan B One-Step, without a prescription two years younger than the current age limit of 17.

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According to the Bureau's review of the November election, 66.2 percent of registered black voters went to the polls, compared to 64.1 percent of white voters — and only 61.8 percent of voters overall. The election marks the first time that turnout in the African-American community has been higher than in other ethnic groups.

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Black turnout was highest in Wisconsin, Mississippi, and North Carolina. The lowest percentages — of eligible black voters, not of voters overall — were in Arizona, Washington, and Arkansas. (Many states have African-American populations too small for the Census Bureau to track; those states are in white in the interactive map below. Otherwise, the darker the color of the state in the map, the higher the turnout.)

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Looking at a map of the results in 2012, it's hard to see a strong correlation between that turnout and electoral results. Here's how each state voted, using the traditional red/Republican, blue/Democrat format.

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The effect comes into sharper relief when you look at the margin of black turnout — in other words, how much black voters turned out compared to voters on the whole. That gives us this map, wherein darker shaded states indicate higher turnout compared to the voting population, and lighter shades indicate lower margins.

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Swing states — Ohio, North Carolina, Indiana, Wisconsin — had black turnout that was higher than the rest of the population, perhaps in part due to turnout efforts in those states.

With the Supreme Court currently reviewing the 1965 Voting Rights Act, mandating, among other things, that certain states subject new voting plans to the Department of Justice before implementation, it's worth seeing how turnout did in those states. Below are the states that have some form of mandated review, or preclearance.

As may be clear from the maps above, those states didn't see lower-than-average black turnout. In fact, averaging both turnout and deviance from the norm in those Voting Rights Act (VRA) states, we see that they outperformed non-VRA ones.

This data carries a heavy caveat, of course. The 2012 election featured the nation's first African-American president facing off against a not-terribly-popular white Republican. And Voting Rights Act states are commonly ones in which there's a higher percentage of African-Americans; racism against that community is why Congress stepped in to create the VRA in the first place.

The true test will likely come in 2016, when Obama is not on the ticket. It's very likely that black turnout is no longer the highest during that election. And there's a small chance that .

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A group of senior Republican and Democratic senators proposed a new law on Tuesday to combat computer espionage and the theft of valuable commercial data from U.S. companies.

The four powerful senators - Democrats Carl Levin and Jay Rockefeller and Republicans John McCain and Tom Coburn - joined together to launch the Deter Cyber Theft Act.

The proposed law aims to combat the theft of intellectual property from U.S. companies, which spend billions in research and development only to be targeted by foreign firms and countries that illegally access their data and use it to compete against them.

General Keith Alexander, head of the U.S. National Security Agency and commander of the U.S. Cyber Command, has called the growing problem the "greatest transfer of wealth in history."

China is accused of being the biggest culprit in theft attempts against U.S. companies. American lawmakers have said U.S. companies suffered estimated losses in 2012 of more than $300 billion due to trade-secret theft, much of it due to Chinese cyber espionage.

Levin, chairman of the Armed Services Committee, said the new law would help protect American businesses and innovation.

"We need to call out those who are responsible for cyber theft and empower the president to hit the thieves where it hurts most - in their wallets, by blocking imports of products or from companies that benefit from this theft," Levin said in a statement.

McCain, a powerful voice in the Senate on armed services and foreign affairs issues, said the bill would give President Barack Obama authority to target those who try to benefit from cyber crime.

A divided U.S. Congress has not approved much legislation in recent years, given a string of partisan fiscal battles.

But with lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle acknowledging that cyber security is a rising concern, this bipartisan measure - sponsored by leading senators - will likely draw plenty of interest.

A senior Democratic aide described cyber security as a "huge priority," for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.

The proposed act would require the Director of National Intelligence to compile an annual report that includes a list of nations that engage in economic or industrial espionage in cyberspace against U.S. firms or individuals. It would include a priority watch list of the worst offenders.

The report would also include a list of U.S. technologies targeted by the espionage, details of what had been stolen and a list of items produced using the stolen information.

The DNI's report would also list countries that had benefited from the theft and the action taken by the U.S. government to combat cyber espionage.

Under the proposed law, the president would be required to block imports of products containing stolen U.S. technology or products made by state-owned enterprises of nations on the DNI's priority watch list that are similar to items identified as being made using stolen technology.

(Reporting by Deborah Charles; Additional reporting by Thomas Ferraro; Editing by David Brunnstrom)

DEAR ABBY: My husband and I have been married almost 10 years. He has always been a good husband, but recently he has been coming home increasingly late. He says he's putting in overtime.

The other day when I was doing the laundry, I discovered a red stain on his underwear. He said they were painting the bathroom at work and he had gotten paint on it when he used the facilities, but it looks more like lipstick to me.

Can you tell me how to get the lipstick out of his shorts? -- GOOD HOUSEWIFE IN UTAH

DEAR GOOD HOUSEWIFE: There's more to marriage than getting whiter whites. You may be a great housewife, but you're missing the big picture. More important than getting the lipstick out of his shorts is keeping his shorts away from the lipstick. And that's no joke.

DEAR ABBY: My girlfriend just moved in, and we're going to have a party to celebrate. We have decided to have it here, but the problem is we have just one bathroom.

I think we should rent a porta-potty. We could put it in the hallway next to the dining room. My girlfriend thinks that's tacky, but I think it's a sensible solution. Because this is a fourth-floor walk-up, the porta-potty folks may charge extra to deliver it. Advice, please? -- TOM AND NANCY IN NEW YORK

DEAR TOM AND NANCY: Gladly. Charge for the use of the porta-potty and two things will happen: You will make enough money to reimburse yourself for the delivery cost, and so few guests will accept your invitations in the future that your one bathroom will be able to accommodate them.

DEAR ABBY: My wife and I and our teenage son came home from a family get-together, and after he went to bed, my wife told me she wants to get a new, "bouncier" bed. We don't want to wake up our son with the noise of our enjoying it. What kind of bed do you recommend? -- MR. ROMANCE IN OREGON

DEAR MR. ROMANCE: Forget the bed and buy a trampoline. And if your son asks why, tell him you're training to join the circus.

DEAR ABBY: How can I give my boyfriend makeup sex if we never have an argument? -- MISS BLISS IN INDIANA

DEAR MISS BLISS: That's a good question. If you figure out the answer, let me know.

DEAR ABBY: I am a married man dating a married woman. She's the love of my life. My girlfriend is sweet, kind, has a caring heart and is very much a lady.

We often sneak away for romantic weekends, where we laugh and enjoy being together and forget our daily routines. Sometimes I'll stop and watch her while she shops or talks to people and admire how beautiful she is. The twinkle in her eyes is as close as I can get to the stars in the sky. I adore her and plan to be with her for the rest of my life.

And one more thing: My girlfriend is also my bride of 40 years! -- ONE LUCKY GUY IN TENNESSEE

DEAR LUCKY GUY: Normally I'd advise you to try to turn your wife into the love of your life, but you're ahead of me!

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.

The legislation is seen as an important step in reversing Spain's reputation as soft on doping and the government hopes it will improve Madrid's chances of winning the right to host the 2020 Olympic Games.

"We are going to need some time to become credible," Ana Munoz, director general of Spain's anti-doping agency (AEA), told local radio.

"The image of Spanish sport abroad is magnificent but in the fight against doping our image is not good," she added.

"Having this law in parliament is the guarantee that Spain is in the vanguard of nations who want to tackle doping and protect the health of athletes."

The bill seeks to bring the country into line with the World Anti-Doping Code, which went into force at the beginning of 2009 and provides a framework for anti-doping policies, rules and regulations for sports organizations and public authorities.

An attempt to update Spanish legislation under the previous government foundered but the current center-right administration hopes this time the bill will clear parliament.

Athletes caught cheating will face fines of up to $523,300, although the use of banned substances and other doping methods will not be considered a criminal offence.

The bill also gives authorities the right to conduct doping tests between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. in exceptional cases as long as the reasons are explained to the athlete.

The presentation of the new law coincides with the "Operation Puerto" trial in Madrid of Spanish doctor Eufemiano Fuentes and four other defendants accused of running a doping ring in professional cycling.

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) is optimistic the trial, which started at the end of January and is due to conclude at the end of March, will finally lead to evidence of possible wrongdoing in other sports being made available.

Fuentes has revealed that as well as cycling he had clients in other sports including soccer, tennis, athletics and boxing.

WADA's requests for access to evidence seized by police in raids in 2006 have been repeatedly denied by the Spanish courts, although the judge in the "Puerto" trial has said she will consider a fresh WADA request.

(Reporting by Iain Rogers, Editing by Clare Fallon)

Atlantic City, once a prominent destination for gamblers, lost its ranking as the second-biggest U.S. gaming market, behind Las Vegas, to the neighboring state of Pennsylvania.

The credit rating agency also took a jab at Caesars Entertainment Corp on Friday, cutting its corporate family rating to Caa2 from Caa1.

Moody's also downgraded additional Caesars' debt on Friday. The action affected a total of $15.6 billion of debt, and the outlook is negative.

So far this year the company has continued to see negative gaming revenue trends across most of its major markets, as higher taxes are slicing into customers' discretionary income and derailing a rebound in gaming demand, Moody's said.

Moody's rates Atlantic City's general obligation debt Baa1 with a negative outlook. A spate of bad news has continued to put downward pressure on its credit rating, but for now the outlook and rating are unchanged, Moody's said on Friday.

One potential bright spot has been the state's legalization in February of online gaming for a 10-year trial period.

Under the legislation, computer servers used to host the gaming websites would be housed within Atlantic City's casinos so those casinos could accrue the revenues.

That potential revenue boost would help to stabilize the city's taxable property values, because financial performance is an element of each casino's market and assessment value, Moody's said.

Casinos with improved taxable values would also likely be less able to reduce their tax bills through appeals.

Trump Taj Mahal, for example, has appealed its Atlantic City property taxes every year since 2008, Moody's said.

But the ability to place a bet from home could cause further erosion of Atlantic City gambling tourism, which has been dropping since 2005.

The decline is due to several factors, Moody's said, including new gambling venues in neighboring states, a weak regional economic recovery, high gas prices and a "stubbornly high" state unemployment rate, which was 9.3 percent in February.

Visitors pay hotel taxes and parking fees, which back bonds sold by the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority.

(Reporting by Hilary Russ; editing by Sofina Mirza-Reid and Phil Berlowitz)

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Stephen Hawking toured a stem cell laboratory Tuesday where scientists are studying ways to slow the progression of Lou Gehrig's disease, a neurological disorder that has left the British cosmologist almost completely paralyzed.

After the visit, the 71-year-old Hawking urged doctors, nurses and staff at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center to support the research.

Hawking recalled how he became depressed when he was diagnosed with the disease 50 years ago and initially didn't see a point in finishing his doctorate. But his attitude changed when his condition didn't progress quickly and he was able to concentrate on his studies.

"Every new day became a bonus," he told a packed room.

Cedars-Sinai received nearly $18 million last year from California's taxpayer-funded stem cell institute to study the debilitating disease also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. ALS attacks nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that control the muscles. People gradually have more and more trouble breathing and moving as muscles weaken and waste away.

There's no cure and no way to reverse the disease's progression. Few people with ALS live longer than a decade.

Diagnosed at age 21 while a student at Cambridge University, Hawking has survived longer than most. He receives around-the-clock care, can only communicate by twitching his cheek, and relies on a computer mounted to his wheelchair to convey his thoughts in a distinctive robotic monotone.

A Cedars-Sinai patient who was Hawking's former student spurred doctors to invite the physicist to glimpse their stem cell work.

"We decided it was a great opportunity for him to see the labs and for us to speak to one of the preeminent scientists in the world," said Dr. Robert Baloh, who heads the hospital's ALS program.

During the tour, Hawking viewed microscopic stem cells through a projector screen and asked questions about the research, Baloh said.

Cedar-Sinai scientists have focused on engineering stem cells to make a protein in hopes of preventing nerve cells from dying. The experiment so far has been done in rats. Baloh said he hopes to get governmental approval to test it in humans, which would be needed before any therapy can be approved.

Renowned for his work on black holes and the origins of the universe, Hawking is famous for bringing esoteric physics concepts to the masses through his best-selling books including "A Brief History of Time," which sold more than 10 million copies worldwide. Hawking titled his speech to Cedars-Sinai employees "A Brief History of Mine."

Despite his diagnosis, Hawking has remained active. In 2007, he floated like an astronaut on an aircraft that creates weightlessness by making parabolic dives.

Space exploration is important "for the future of humanity," he told the audience.

Hawking said he did not think Earthlings would survive "without escaping beyond your fragile planet."

And he gave some advice: Look up at the stars. Stay curious.

"However difficult life may seem, there is always something you can do and succeed at," he said.

Doctors don't know why some people with Lou Gehrig's disease fare better than others. Baloh said he has treated patients who lived for 10 years or more.

"But 50 years is unusual, to say the least," he said.

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