The Sunshine State has something to suit everyone's taste – from Orlando's theme parks, to the beaches of the Panhandle, to Art Deco Miami – and it doesn't have to cost a packet, says Fred Mawer

US authorities have arrested an Irish-born military contractor suspected of hacking into the computers of teenage girls around the world and threatening to post their personal information online unless they sent him revealing photos.

It’s no easy task to release back into the wild a rare sea cow weighing 3,000lb after 26 years in captivity, reports Michael McCarthy

An airline apologized yesterday to nine Muslims kicked off a New Year's Day flight to Florida after other passengers reported hearing a suspicious remark about airplane security.

Tropical Storm Fay continued its erratic path today, moving north along the Florida coast but not going out over the Atlantic Ocean, where many had feared it could strengthen and curve back toward the state as a hurricane.

She has dominated women's golf over the last decade, winning 10 majors, but this weekend's British Open will be her last – or maybe not. She explains all to Chris McGrath

Brunch in the Tower of Babel, a stroll round Noah's Ark or a big-dipper splashdown in The Flood are experiences that will shortly be available to millions of Germans if a controversial biblical-themed park near the ancient university town of Heidelberg is given the go-ahead.

Comedian David Schneider leaves his children at home and indulges in a no-luxuries-spared trip to Orlando, Florida, where he gets dazzled by theme parks and palatial hotels – and meets a dolphin called Dexter

The world of mixed martial arts apparently involves bare-chested jocks knocking seven bells out of one another, and in Florida, young Sean Faris is the latest initiate.

Lou Pearlman, the larger-than-life music impresario who gave us the boy band sensations *NSYNC and the Backstreet Boys, is expected to plead guilty today to charges that for more than two decades he defrauded more than $300m (£150m) out of investors in a variety of financial scams.

Defiant and bombastic to the last, Conrad Black hurled Churchillian rhetoric at his accusers yesterday before bidding farewell to his wife, Barbara Amiel, and surrendering to authorities at the largest penitentiary in the United States.

The United States of America is the size of western Europe in both population and landmass. In fact, there's a theory that the 300,000,000 or so Americans could legitimately be divided into five separate countries along cultural lines.

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