It's part politics. It's part reality. But the sum total equates to a fundamental shift in national policy as it relates to global warming.

The Bush administration now says that the growth of greenhouse gas emissions must be halted by 2025. After years of opposing any such regulations, the White House is laying out what might become the general framework for new discussions. It's a necessary move, as political candidates and businesses alike realize that carbon constraints are becoming increasingly real. A recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling, meantime, requires the administration to take action if it deems the release of those emissions as harmful to human health and the environment.

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Oil Price Rise Fails to Squelch Demand or Raise Production

As oil prices soared to record levels in recent years, basic economics suggested that consumption would fall and supplies would rise as producers drilled for more oil.

But as prices pass $125 per barrel, many energy experts are becoming worried that neither seems to be happening. Higher prices have done little to suppress global demand or attract new production, and the resulting mismatch has sent oil prices ever higher.

That has translated into more pain at the pump. Experts expect prices above $4 a gallon this summer, and one analyst recently predicted that gasoline could reach $7 in the next four years.

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House Panel to Probe Energy Trading

A House committee has begun an investigation into speculation in energy markets, including the role of investment banks, and is planning to hold hearings in May and June, according to a Democratic aide and several people invited as witnesses.

In particular, lawmakers are taking aim at hedge funds and investment banks, blaming them for playing a pivotal role in pushing crude-oil prices to record levels. Crude futures set a new record Friday, closing at a record high of $125.96 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

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Gas Hydrate Breakthrough Made in Canada

A remote drilling rig high in the Mackenzie Delta has become the site of a breakthrough that could one day revolutionize the world's energy supply.

For the first time, Canadian and Japanese researchers have managed to efficiently produce a constant stream of natural gas from ice-like gas hydrates that, worldwide, dwarf all known fossil fuel deposits combined.

"We were able to sustain flow," said Scott Dallimore, the Geological Survey of Canada researcher in charge of the remote Mallik drilling program. "It worked."

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