Everyone hold your breath for this news story. Literally.

In a news report Feb. 19 from the Associated Press, it was reported that the Environmental Protection Agency is likely to consider carbon dioxide an air pollutant.

I don't know when anyone decided that naturally formed elements in the atmosphere were a big deal. From what I learned in elementary school, I always thought that carbon dioxide was good because it helped plants grow.

Many Democrats and even some prominent Republicans are calling for the federal government to nationalize major U.S. banks in order to control the current economic tailspin. Nothing scares bankers or shareholders...

When Taryn Davis found out her husband lost his life in the Iraq war in 2007, she was a 21-year-old student at the University of Texas at Austin, and her life's dreams had been shattered.

Davis founded The American Widow Project in the wake of her husband's death just a few months after he was killed. The AWP is coming to the university this week to speak to students and generate a teddy bear drive for children who have lost their fathers in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Six years ago, five high school students recorded an album in a Fort Worth church basement. Lots of local support and a major record deal later, Green River Ordinance has released its label debut, "Out Of My Hands."

Lead singer Josh Jenkins said the album is a testimony to the band's work over the past year. Signed by Virgin Records in 2007, the band was ecstatic, but at the same time Jenkins said they understood the weight of the new responsibility.

A billionaire energy tycoon told about 800 people Monday afternoon in the Brown-Lupton University Union Ballroom that if the country does not begin using its own resources, the current crisis will only get worse.

T. Boone Pickens, chairman of hedge fund BP Capital Management and author of "The First Billion is the Hardest," said that in two years the United States could be paying $200 to $300 a barrel for foreign oil if it doesn't cut foreign oil dependency.

Instant messaging and chat rooms have switched from entertaining students to answering their technological queries.

Bryan Lucas, executive director of Technology Resources said customer service staff came up with the idea and implemented a chat room program last February. The program is another way the Computer Help Desk can help students from anywhere on or off campus, he said.

Customer service staff thought a chat program would be a good way to communicate with students, Lenelda Pennington, associate director of customer services, said.

The creator of a plan to ease the country dependence of foreign oil will speak to the Energy Club as a way to boost the club's membership numbers and give students and the community a better grasp on the current energy crisis.

T. Boone Pickens, chairman of the hedge fund BP Capital Management, is not only one of the richest men in the U.S., but author of the new book "The First Billion is the Hardest: Reflections on a Life of Comebacks and America's Energy Future."

Students may have more difficulty securing internships during an economic downturn, an official with Career Services said.

John Thompson, executive director of University Career Services, said downturns typically result in an increase in internship opportunities as well as increased competition because graduate students and people who have been out of school for years are also applying for the internships.