Wiggins became the first British rider to win the Tour, but he has not been able to prepare properly leading to the June 29 start of the race.

He withdrew before the 13th stage of the Giro d'Italia two weeks ago because of a chest infection. His Team Sky said Friday he also has an ''ongoing ... condition'' with his left knee and would not be considered for the squad.

''It's a huge disappointment not to make the Tour. I desperately wanted be there, for the team and for all the fans along the way - but it's not going to happen,'' Wiggins said in a team statement. ''I can't train the way I need to train and I'm not going to be ready. Once you accept that, it's almost a relief not having to worry about the injury and the race against time.''

Last season was an astonishingly successful one for Wiggins. In addition the Tour, he also won the Paris-Nice stage race, Tour de Romandie, the Dauphine Libere and the Olympic gold medal in dominant fashion in the time trial.

''It's a big loss but, given these circumstances, we won't consider him for selection,'' Sky's team principal Dave Brailsford said. ''It's incredibly sad to have the reigning champion at Team Sky but not lining up at the Tour. But he's a champion, a formidable athlete and will come back winning as he has before.''

With Wiggins out, Froome will become the undisputed team leader for the Tour. Sky had already said that Froome would be its team leader, although Wiggins had indicated he may have tried to ride for victory if he were in contention toward the end of the race.

Relations between the two were frosty during last year's Tour, with Froome sometimes looking much the stronger rider in the climbs but being thwarted by team orders to support Wiggins rather than try and attack him.

This prompted a spat between Wiggins' wife and Froome's girlfriend, with the women showing support for their partners by exchanging barbs on Twitter.

Froome finished second at the Spanish Vuelta two years ago and won a bronze medal in the Olympic time trial. He has shown good form this year by winning the Criterium International and Tour de Romandie.

Wiggins was looking to follow his Tour success with a Giro victory until his bid was derailed by illness. Although his chest infection has cleared up, team doctor Richard Freeman says there are still concerns with his knee.

''However, further medical investigations on the knee injury that we were managing at the Giro showed the condition was more significant than we thought,'' Freeman said. ''It has needed intensive treatment and, whilst it will be fully resolved, Bradley now needs to rest completely for five days before a gradual, return to full training over a period of two to three weeks.''

Wiggins had to withdraw from the 2011 Tour early on after breaking his collarbone in a crash. He has promised to come back stronger from this latest setback.

''I've been through this before, when I broke my collarbone, so I know how it works. I'll get this sorted, set new goals for this season and focus on those,'' Wiggins said. ''This team has so many riders in great shape, ready for selection and we set incredible standards for performance which shouldn't be compromised. We need to have the best chance to win.''

DEAR ABBY: My wife revealed on my 60th birthday two days ago that she has $10,000 in cash hidden in our house. She said she secretly took the money from my pay and consulting checks and hid it when we were going through a bad period in our marriage 10 years ago and nearly divorced.

I told her there is no rational reason for keeping that much money in the house. She says she's keeping it for an emergency, and it makes her feel secure. When I said we should invest the money, she got upset.

I can't understand why anyone would want to keep that much cash in the house. What's your view? -- LIVING IN "FORT KNOX"

DEAR LIVING: To understand your wife's motivation, look back 10 years to the time when she may have felt she'd need the money to get a new start. That's the "emergency" the money was salted away for.

I agree that $10,000 is a lot of cash to keep in the house. Most of it should be in the bank, with only a portion in the house so it will be immediately available if needed. Unless your wife feels your marriage is still shaky, I can't see why she wouldn't compromise. Could that be her reason?

DEAR ABBY: I am a 15-year-old girl with a good life. There are bumps in the road, but they happen and I accept that. The thing I worry about is my me-maw. She's getting very old and thinks she will be dying soon.

I try to tell her not to think that way. I really love her and don't know what I would do if she were gone so soon. I go to her house every summer, winter, and anytime we're out of school.

I need to get a job this summer, and I don't know how to tell my me-maw I won't be coming to visit without hurting her feelings. She is one of those people who don't show their emotions like most of my family, so I know when she sometimes says it's OK it really isn't. Please tell me what to say to her. -- CONCERNED GRANDCHILD IN ALABAMA

DEAR CONCERNED GRANDCHILD: You are sweet, thoughtful and sensitive, but you are also growing up. Your grandmother may be talking the way she is because of her age -- or she may be concerned about her health and trying to prepare you.

It's time to ask your parents what is going on with her. If she's really sick, you may want to postpone getting that job until next summer. If she's not, you should explain to Me-maw that you love her and treasure the special times you have been able to spend with her -- but as much as you'd like to, you will not be able to do it this summer because you need to get a job. It's part of becoming an adult and will help you to learn responsibility and independence. As a loving grandparent, she knows how important that is for you.

DEAR ABBY: I am a hairdresser, and one of my clients who considers herself to be my good friend handed me a birthday card. Stuck on the envelope was a sticky note with my name written on it, covering whatever name was underneath. On the card, under "Happy Birthday" was her signature -- again on a sticky note. She said she thought the card was funny and too good not to use again, so I should pass it on, too.

I am hurt and insulted. Am I taking this too seriously? I want my own birthday card! -- SHOCKED IN FLORIDA

DEAR SHOCKED: Your client was trying to be thoughtful, or she wouldn't have remembered it was your birthday. Be grateful for what you got. She didn't mean to insult you -- in a weird way she was trying to do you a favor.

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.

What teens need to know about sex, drugs, AIDS and getting along with peers and parents is in "What Every Teen Should Know." Send your name and mailing address, plus check or money order for $7 (U.S. funds) to: Dear Abby, Teen Booklet, P.O. Box 447, Mount Morris, IL 61054-0447. (Shipping and handling are included in the price.)

BRUSSELS/JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - African countries keen to improve crop yields, reduce hunger and protect themselves from climate change have begun to reassess their objections to genetically modified crops, after following Europe's lead in largely banning the technology.

While North and South American producers enthusiastically embraced genetically modified crops nearly two decades ago and use is spreading in Asia, many European and African countries have banned it, in part because of public fear of health risks.

For many governments, those health concerns have eased after years in which genetically modified food has been grown and consumed safely around the world.

In a sign of changing attitudes, European authorities had only a muted response last week when U.S. officials said that an unapproved strain of modified Monsanto wheat had been found growing on a farm in Oregon.

Yet public opposition to GM foods still remains intense in some countries, and European officials say the easing of health concerns is unlikely to yield a big change in their policy any time soon. Countries such as Austria and France have blocked proposals to make EU cultivations rules more flexible.

But in Africa, where governments are increasingly searching for ways to feed growing populations, there are signs that restrictions could be gradually lifted.

"There is growing recognition that African countries will need to use a range of modern technologies, including biotechnology, to adapt crops to new ecological conditions," Calestous Juma, a Kenyan professor of international development at Harvard University in the United States told Reuters.

AFRICAN EXPLORATION

Approving GM crops in Africa has so far been slow. Until 2008, South Africa was the only country on the continent that allowed the commercial cultivation of genetically modified crops, such as maize, cotton and soybeans.

That year Egypt started growing small quantities of altered maize and Burkina Faso allowed GM cotton. Last year, Sudan also began allowing GM cotton. They are still the only four African countries that allow GM crops to be grown commercially.

South Africa still accounts for the nearly all of the 3 million hectares of GM crop plantings in Africa, dwarfing the 129,000 hectares in largely GM-free Europe but still a tiny fraction of the 170 million hectares of global GM crops.

According to the African Biosafety Network of Expertise, an African Union-run network for regulators, Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi and Uganda have taken the step of approving confined trials of genetically altered plants.

Parliament in Africa's most populous country Nigeria has voted to loosen the country's ban on genetically modified organisms (GMOs), with a bill awaiting presidential approval.

"The bill's quite cautious. The government's concern is that it does not want to make Nigeria a testing ground for GMOs, as has happened in the past with pharmaceuticals," said Kola Masha, who advises the government on agribusiness.

Genetically modified cotton has been a test case, seen as safer than other crops because it does not enter the food chain.

"We don't eat our clothes, so people are less concerned about cotton. This would be the first way in for GMOs," said Masha in Nigeria.

Caroline Theka, an environment officer in Malawi, said that country had approved trials for modified cotton but not for modified food crops.

Elsewhere, trials are focused on crops tailored to local markets and conditions, like insect-resistant black-eyed peas and bananas that contain high levels of vitamin A, which helps physical growth and development.

However some African countries are moving in the opposite direction. Kenya set up a biosafety authority in 2009 which approved a few applications for import of genetically modified crops, mainly humanitarian aid for neighbouring countries.

But last November, citing potential health risks, the government imposed a ban, over the authority's objections.

EUROPE PLANTING STILL FAR OFF

In Europe, the prospects for increased cultivation remain remote, even though health arguments are no longer at the forefront of opposition to GM crops.

"When I speak to people who are very unhappy with the idea of GM technology, they're no longer saying to me 'I think it's dangerous'," the European Commission's chief scientific adviser, Anne Glover, told a seminar in Brussels in April.

Despite national restrictions on growing GM crops, Europe is one of the world's major buyers of biotech grain, importing more than 30 million tonnes of mostly GM animal feed each year.

With no evidence of health effects to seize on, opponents have turned in part to economic and political arguments, saying that GM food puts too much power in the hands of the firms that develop it and control the market for seed.

"Public opposition to GMOs is still alive in Europe. The concerns are clearly focussed on the companies and the role they play in the deployment of GMO products, as well as the lack of benefits," said Greenpeace's EU GMO campaigner Marco Contiero.

Campaigners estimate that 2 million people in 50 countries took part in demonstrations last month against Monsanto.

Monsanto says its products help improve yields and produce more food, while reducing the amount of water, land and energy needed to grow it.

"Monsanto spends more than $4 million a day in research and development to deliver higher yields and improve the sustainability of farming. Intellectual property is an important and completely legitimate means to that end," said spokesman Brandon Mitchener.

A corrected version of the story is below:

By RON BLUM

Associated Press

Various Artists, "Wagner at the Met: Legendary Performances from The Metropolitan Opera" (Sony Classical)

Yes, there really was a golden age, and this was it.

To mark the 200th anniversary of Richard Wagner's birth on May 22, a 25-disc set taken from the archives of Saturday afternoon Metropolitan Opera broadcasts documents performances of nine of the composer's 10 mature works "Parsifal" was excluded. The recordings date from 1936-54 and while some of these had appeared previously on CD, these are the first authorized releases. The sound from the original lacquers and tapes has been improved and cleaned markedly, but don't expect the clarity, depth and width of the digital era, especially from the 1930s broadcasts. And the conductors of the day made cuts that would be unacceptable to the 21st century Met audience.

But, oh, the singing.

Hans Hotter's booming Dutchman from "Die Fliegende Hollaender" is paired with Astrid Varnay's excitable Senta under Fritz Reiner's baton from 1950. George Szell's "Tannhaeuser" from 1954 shows interesting tempi choices in the overture, which includes a sudden speedup in the Venusberg theme.

Ramon Vinay's clarion tenor is featured as Tannhaeuser, this time matched with Varnay's sultry Venus, Margaret Harshaw's hefty Elisabeth and a young Roberta Peters as the Shepherd.

For a 1943 "Lohengrin," a fresher-sounding Varnay's Elsa is together with Lauritz Melchior in the title role under Erich Leinsdorf's baton that emphasized flow over energy. Melchior's "In fernem land (In a far-off land)" is a model of diction, breath control, pacing, color and inflection.

Melchior is a central part of the Ring Cycle, as Siegmund in a 1940 "Die Walkuere" with Marjorie Lawrence's Sieglinde, Kirsten Flagstad's Bruennhilde and Julius Huehn's Wotan (under Leinsdorf), a 1937 "Siegfried" with Flagstad and Freidrich Schorr's Wanderer (under Bodanzsky) and a 1936 "Goetterdaemmerung" with Lawrence (again under Bodanzsky).

Melchior's seemingly effortless soft singing in "Winterstuerme (Wintry storms)" highlights how often the role is shouted these days by tenors lacking his technique, and Lawrence's "Du bist der Lenz (You are the spring)" builds tension and pace along with Sieglinde's ardor. Flagstad combines iciness and affection in her opening "Siegmund! Sieh' auf mich! (Siegmund! Look at me!)" from the Todesverkuendigung (Annunciation of death). While Huehn's "Leb' wohl (Farewell)" is low on emotion, Flagstad and Melchior sparkle in the closing duet from "Siegfried."

A 1938 "Tristan und Isolde" with Melchior, Flagstad and Bodanzsky reveals an incendiary love duet that lifts the opera to an even higher level, and Flagstad follows with an ecstatic, mournful Liebestod (lovedeath), although here the thin sound of the recording detracts.

Finally, there is a "Die Meistersinger von Nuernberg" from 1953. Reiner carefully blended Hans Hopf's lyrical Walther, Paul Schoeffler's thick-voiced Sachs and Victoria de los Angeles' sweet and innocent Eva.

While Sony had released 20 individual sets of Met broadcasts in recent years, including a 1968 "Walkuere" and 1972 "Meistersinger," the historic recordings have far more impact when packaged together here. A similar Verdi set is planned for the fall.

Next week, in a remote desert in southern Utah, 10 teams from the United States, Canada, India and Poland will compete in the annual University Rover Challenge (URC). The competition is hosted by the Mars Society, a non-profit research organization dedicated to promoting the exploration and eventual settlement of Mars.

The competition site is located at the society's Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS), a rocky barren landscape that's about as close to Martian terrain as you can get on Earth. [See also:]

Each team was allowed to spend up to $15,000 on their rovers, which can weigh no more than 50 kilograms about 110 lbs.

On Monday (May 27), the first members of the URC team will arrive at the Research Station to start setting up, Kevin Sloan, director of the URC, told us. The competition will begin early Thursday morning as teams leave their lodgings in Hanksville, Utah (Pop. 215), and travel about seven miles along a road that dwindles to a dirt track. Over three days, teams will use their vehicles to compete in four challenges, designed to replicate the activities of NASA's rovers on Mars.

For instance,, now in its ninth month of a two-year mission on Mars, has recently been deployed to its second drilling site to take rock samples, analyze them for evidence of microscopic life and send the data back to NASA. Likewise, teams will guide their rovers to collect the subsurface soil samples most likely to contain photosynthetic bacteria, lichen and other bits of living material.

The specific tasks change each year, but the most difficult ones continue to be those that need rovers to do humanlike work.

"Year after year, the tasks that involve manipulation that is to say using the robot's arm and hand to do meaningful work really stress the teams' systems the most," Sloan said. "Manipulation from a mobile platform is one of the biggest challenges in thecommunity."

Like NASA controllers, team members must guide their rovers via a remote connection, such as a computer in the back of a truck, as long as it's shielded so the team can't see their rovers. The URC is based on the assumption that the rovers are telerobots, which means they would be operated by astronauts on or orbiting Mars.

In addition to collecting soil, the rovers will deliver a series of packages, such as emergency supplies to "astronauts" (URC staff) in the field, fix a dust-covered solar panel (without water, of course) and finally, navigate an obstacle course that will include climbing steep grades, getting over boulders and passing through PVC pipe gates, aimed to test each rover's maneuverability.

This year's teams represent universities and colleges in Canada, India, Poland and the United States, including two-time returning champions Toronto's York University (2012 and 2009) and Oregon State (2010 and 2008).

Details about the capabilities of this year's rovers are kept under wraps by the teams. However, Sloan did tell us he expects one rover to include an unmanned aerial vehicle, i.e., a.

"Other than that, I don't have any insight into unique system features," Sloan said. "Like everyone else, I'm waiting to be surprised next week in the field!"

This story was provided by , a sister site to SPACE.com. Follow Leslie Meredith . Follow us , onor on . Original article on .

A fourth woman has accused Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain of sexual harassment--this time in public. Sharon Bialek told reporters in a press conference Monday that Cain groped her and exhibited "sexually inappropriate" behavior toward her when he was head of the National Restaurant Association.

Bialek, a former NRA employee who worked for the association in between 1996 and 1997, said the encounter occurred shortly after she was laid off from the group's education fund in July 1997.

She said she had approached Cain for help in looking for a new job and had traveled to Washington, D.C., where she had dinner with the then-NRA head. She told reporters that upon her arrival in D.C. she discovered that Cain had secretly upgraded her hotel room to a suite.

After dinner, the two were sitting in his car when she claimed he "suddenly reached over and put his hand on my leg under my skirt and reached for my genitals" and moved her head toward his crotch.

"I was surprised and shocked, and I said, what are you doing? You know I have a boyfriend," Bialek recalled saying. "This is not what I came here for."

Bialak claimed that when she protested, Cain replied, "You want a job, right?

She told reporters Cain backed off after she asked him to stop, and he drove her back to her hotel.

Bialek, who identified herself as a stay-at-home single mom who lives in Chicago and is a registered Republican, said she didn't file a complaint with the NRA in part because she was no longer formally employed by the group--and also because she was "very embarrassed." She was joined at the press conference by her attorney, celebrity lawyer Gloria Allred, who offered sworn affidavits from two friends to whom Bialek spoke shortly after the alleged encounter.

"I was very very surprised and very shocked," Bialek said, adding that she had come forward to be a "face" for women who had been harassed by Cain. "I want you, Mr. Cain, to come clean. Just admit what you did. Admit you were inappropriate to people ... I implore you. Make this right."

The Cain campaign issued a statement denying Bialek's claims.

"All allegations of harassment against Mr. Cain are completely false," the campaign said in a statement. " Mr. Cain has never harassed anyone."

Bialek is the fourth woman to accuse Cain of sexual harassment when he was head of the NRA, but she's the only accuser who has spoken publicly.

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CBS, a unit of CBS Corp, snatched the title from News Corp-owned Fox, which had dominated the age group for eight straight years until it was hurt this season by a ratings slump for singing competition "American Idol."

CBS rode hits like "The Big Bang Theory" and "2 Broke Girls" and was helped by February's Super Bowl broadcast, which attracted the biggest TV audience of the year. Even without the big game, CBS said it would have been first in the key age group.

The network drew an average of 3.7 million prime time viewers ages 18 to 49, according to Nielsen ratings data through May 19. Although three nights remain in the season, results are unlikely to change significantly.

According to Nielsen, Fox finished second with 3.2 million in the key audience group, followed by Comcast-owned NBC with 3.0 million and Walt Disney Co's ABC with 2.8 million.

All of the networks lost viewers among 18-49 year old demographic, with CBS declining by 3.6 percent, as broadcasters fought competition from cable channels and streaming services like Netflix as well as delayed and mobile viewing that Nielsen does not fully measure.

CBS also dominated ratings based on overall viewers for the 10th time in 11 years, the network said. Total viewers rose 1 percent to 11.9 million, followed by ABC with 7.9 million, Fox with 7.0 million and NBC with 6.96 million.

(Reporting by Lisa Richwine; Editing by Bob Burgdorfer)

Bieber, who was named top male artist, also performed at the show at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. He also took home Billboard's first Milestone Award, chosen by fans, for musical innovation and ingenuity.

"I'm 19 years old. I think I'm doing a pretty good job, Bieber said. "It should really be about the music. This is not a gimmick. I'm an artist and I should be taken seriously. And all this other bull should not be spoken of."

The teen heartthrob did not elaborate, but in recent months he has been involved in several high-profile incidents ranging from driving offenses to reports of hard partying and drugs being found on his tour bus in Sweden.

Swift won the top award of the night, artist of the year. She thanked her fans by telling them: "You are the longest and best relationship I've ever had."

Pop diva Madonna was named top touring artist for her "MDNA Tour," 2012's highest-grossing concert series.

Madonna strode onstage to accept the accolade from will.i.am, wearing black fishnet stockings, garters and a padlock choker.

The MDNA tour grossed more than $305 million from 88 sold-out shows and attracted an audience of 2.2 million people. Madonna acknowledged her fans, saying: "A showgirl needs her fans. Thank you for supporting me for three decades."

She also thanked her four children for being "incredibly supportive."

The Billboard Music Awards, hosted by "30 Rock" star Tracy Morgan, opened with Bruno Mars performing "Treasure."

Early awards went to Macklemore and Ryan Lewis, who won top rap song for "Thrift Shop," and Nicki Minaj, who took home the top rap artist honor.

Carly Rae Jepsen's "Call Me Maybe" was named top digital song, while Swift took home the top Billboard 200 album award for "Red."

French producer and DJ David Guetta was named top electric dance music artist.

Among musical highlights, Bieber performed "Take You," which was chosen by his fans via Twitter, before pairing up with will.i.am for "#ThatPOWER."

Other musical pairings included Jennifer Lopez and Pitbull singing "#LiveItUp," Minaj and Lil Wayne who performed "High School," and Christina Aguilera and Pitbull singing "Feel This Moment."

Selena Gomez, Chris Brown, Icona Pop, South Korea rap sensation Psy and Swift, who was nominated for 11 Billboard awards and received eight, performed as well.

In an apparently unscripted moment, Miguel, performing "Adorn," leapt from the stage and landed feet-first atop two young women. No mention was made on the broadcast as to whether they were injured.

The show ended with the Icon Award for Prince, in recognition of his unique career and accomplishments in the music industry. Prince performed a medley to close the show, but did not deliver an acceptance speech.

(Reporting by Chris Michaud; Editing by David Brunnstrom and Stacey Joyce)