A regulatory application for a major mid-Atlantic electric transmission line may be withdrawn because of flagging demand projections -- a result not only of the economic slump, but also of energy conservation.

"Interior Secretary Ken Salazar [announced] new drilling policies to protect the environment on western federal lands."

A Japanese whaling vessel hit and sunk a stealth-technology trimaran speedboat used by the Sea Shepherd Society to harass that nation's "research" whaling, which supplies the nation's appetite for otherwise-illegal whale meat. All the activists were rescued and none were seriously injured, according to early reports. Two videos show the incident from two perspectives, as each side blamed the other.

The current cold snap in some parts of the globe is making news -- but not generating many science stories about what is going on.