Featured Articles from Boston.com

The average rate on the U.S. 30-year fixed mortgage ticked down to a new record low this week. The low rates make it one of the most affordable times in history to buy or refinance. Here's a look at rates for fixed- and adjustable-rate mortgages over the past 52 weeks: Current avg. Last week 52-week high 52-week low 30-year fixed 3.83 3.84 4.63 3.83 15-year fixed 3.05 3.07 3.82 3.05 5-yr adjustable 2.81 2.85 3.48 2.78 1-yr adjustable 2.73 2.70 3.15 2.70 All values are in percentage points.

Is fiction good for us? We spend huge chunks of our lives immersed in novels, films, TV shows, and other forms of fiction. Some see this as a positive thing, arguing that made-up stories cultivate our mental and moral development. But others have argued that fiction is mentally and ethically corrosive. It's an ancient question: Does fiction build the morality of individuals and societies, or does it break it down? This controversy has been flaring up — sometimes literally, in the form of book burnings — ever since Plato tried to ban fiction from his ideal republic.

Three respected Catholic publications are reporting that Cardinal Bernard F. Law, the controversial former Boston archbishop, played a key role in the Vatican's decision to tighten its grip on the largest association of Catholic nuns in the United States. The Vatican announced its initiative on April 18, naming three American prelates to ensure that US nuns conform to Church doctrine, which has grown more conservative under Pope John Paul II and his successor, Pope Benedict XVI. Earlier this week, a columnist for The Tablet, a British Catholic weekly, reported that the Vatican's initiative was sparked by Archbishop William E. Lori, who was recently named to lead the Archdiocese of Baltimore, who "formally petitioned" the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith to investigate the nuns.

North Carolina had the hot hand in the opening half. The top-ranked Tar Heels couldn't get anything going in the second. Chace Stanback had a career-high 28 points and added 10 rebounds to help UNLV beat North Carolina 90-80 on Saturday night in the championship game of the Las Vegas Invitational. "Needless to say, we are extremely disappointed. I would like to congratulate coach Rice and his team," North Carolina coach Roy Williams said. "They did a nice job. We could never get our focus offensively the entire game.

JPMorgan Chase, the largest bank in the United States, said Thursday that it lost $2 billion in the past six weeks in a trading portfolio designed to hedge against risks the company takes with its own money. The company's stock plunged almost 7 percent in after-hours trading after the loss was announced. Other bank stocks, including Citigroup and Bank of America, suffered heavy losses as well. "The portfolio has proved to be riskier, more volatile and less effective as an economic hedge than we thought," CEO Jamie Dimon told reporters.

Andrew Luck set the school record for the most career touchdown passes and eclipsed his own season mark, throwing for 233 yards and four scores to lead fourth-ranked Stanford past No. 22 Notre Dame, 28-14, in his home finale last night. Luck topped John Elway's record of 77 touchdown passes and helped the Cardinal (11-1) build a 21-0 halftime lead. He has thrown for 80 touchdowns in three years and 35 this season. Tommy Rees threw an interception, lost a fumble, and took a bruising blow to the ribs for Notre Dame (8-4)

Backstage at "American Idol," Hollie Cavanagh was bubbly and confident, practicing vocal riffs and giggling with fellow teenage contestant Jessica Sanchez. By the show's end Wednesday, Cavanagh was the sole finalist to be found wanting by the judges — and possibly by the viewers who decide which singer will exit Thursday. "Sorry, baby," judges Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez both told Cavanagh, 18, of McKinney, Texas, after she delivered a version of Bonnie Raitt's "I Can't Make You Love Me" that they found emotionally wanting and unsuited to her big voice.

As a child, Steve Thompson displayed outsized reactions to ordinary events and intense mood swings. By age 12, doctors diagnosed him with bipolar disorder. The idea that he had a chronic mental illness - one typically marked in adulthood by manic periods followed by depression - frightened him. "It's something you think you'll have your entire life," said Thompson, a 23-year-old student at Massasoit Community College in Brockton. But over the past year, with the help of his longtime psychiatrist, he has weaned himself off mood-altering medication.

I t starts with a few forgotten names, missed appointments, and words lost on the tip of your tongue. Is it lack of sleep, our crazy lives, or something more ominous? Most people experience memory losses as they slip past their mid-30s and beyond. Memory mistakes ignored earlier in life suddenly seem worrisome, particularly for women — or at least women tend to talk about their anxiety more than men. Researchers have long dismissed these common complaints as "just" signs of aging, and too minor to merit serious study.

Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett won the Democratic primary Tuesday in Wisconsin's historic recall election, leaving him with a short four weeks to make the closing argument that Republican Gov. Scott Walker should be booted from office after 16 contentious months on the job. Walker easily defeated token opposition in the GOP primary Tuesday, and Barrett's win set up a June 5 rematch of the 2010 governor's race. That election two years ago failed to hint at the turmoil to come.

To get our new free e-cookbook for spring, "Sunday Supper & More," go to www.bostonglobe/insiders and click on the book. Follow the instructions to download it onto your iPad, Kindle, Nook, or to get a PDF on yourcomputer. Pictured: chicken with spring vegetables.

From the bully pulpit of his New York Times column, Paul Krugman has been explaining why numbers matters since 1999. The unabashed liberal took the Bush administration to task, but he hasn't exactly let the Obama administration off the hook, as his new book, "End This Depression Now" makes clear. The Nobel laureate is in town Monday night for a sold-out event sponsored by the Harvard Book Store. BOOKS: What are you reading now? KRUGMAN: The thing with gadgets — I have a Kindle and an iPad — is that I tend to have several things going at once.

The design and decor of the Secrets Marquis Los Cabos exude high-end luxury. A dramatic open-air reception lobby, with an arc-shaped roof, frames an expansive view of the Sea of Cortez. Each of the 235 ocean-view suites and casitas has a balcony overlooking three infinity pools and the sandy beach. In addition to a 15,000-square-foot spa, the property boasts a museum-quality art collection of more than 400 pieces, with monumental bronze sculptures by leading Latin American artists in public spaces and original oil paintings in every guest room.

The state on Monday launches a new online system to check criminal backgrounds that would provide wider and easier access for employers, but limit their searches of criminal history to 10 years back. That limit, part of a new law that updates the system known as CORI, for Criminal Offender Record Information, is sparking a debate that pits the rights of employers to know the history of job applicants against the needs of people with decades-old convictions to work and move ahead with their lives.