3. Texas man finds his car 42 years after it was stolen

It was a reunion more than four decades in the making. Almost 42 years after Robert Russell' s prized 1967 Austin-Healey sports car was stolen, he has it back, thanks largely to his own detective work. Off and on for years, Russell, who lives in Texas, trolled the Internet looking for his vehicle, which was stolen in 1970 from his home at the time in Philadelphia. He finally struck gold, finding what looked to be his car being sold on eBay and kept at a dealership in East Los Angeles.

Russell spoke with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, enlisting its help. All those years later, he still had the car's title that listed its vehicle identification number (VIN), which matched the VIN on eBay. But there was one last catch. The car was not registered in the National Crime Information Center, an electronic clearinghouse of crime data. So over the next few weeks, Russell and Sheriff's Detective Carlos Ortega were in touch with the police in Philadelphia. As it turned out, the car's VIN was incorrectly recorded at the time of the theft. The error was corrected, and Ortgea was able to go to the dealership and confirm the car was, in fact, the one that was stolen. He took possession of the vehicle, which in its current condition is estimated to be worth around $23,000, according to the sheriff's department. Russell and his wife later arrived in Los Angeles to pick up the car -- righting a wrong after 42 years.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Robert Russell's 1967 Austin-Healey was stolen in 1970 in Philadelphia

• He tracked it to a dealership in East Los Angeles

• Authorities in Philadelphia and Los Angeles helped to return the car to its rightful owner

4. Why we should look to the Arctic

What happens in the Arctic as ice melts there could soon cheapen the cost of the gas you buy and products you purchase from Asia. It could help make the nation more energy independent. It could draw our leaders into a conflict over undersea territory. For America, the stakes are huge: A chance to gain wealth and global influence in the newest geopolitical playing field, but there is also potential environmental and security disaster if looming challenges are mishandled or ignored. Shell is poised to sink exploratory wells -- temporary ones drilled from ships -- 70 miles north of Alaska in a few weeks. The operation will assess whether an estimated 27 billion barrels of oil is there. This is roughly three times the amount that has been extracted from the Gulf of Mexico over the past 20 years. Proponents believe a discovery would cut America's dependence on foreign oil and provide jobs and needed revenue to the Treasury Department. They say the oil could be extracted safely. Opponents fear a spill would be a disaster, being difficult to clean up in icy seas. The Russian military has identified the Arctic as one of the likely places for conflict to erupt in the 21st century over resources. Even if actual combat never occurs, whoever controls the high north will wield enormous influence in the coming decades. If you care about the environment, if you care about gas prices, if you care about where our soldiers and navy may serve next, if you want the U.S. to remain strong and dominant in the world, look to the north this summer. Look to the Arctic. That's where much of our common future is about to play out.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• For America, opening of the Arctic region could cheapen price of gas and products from Asia

• Shell is planning to drill 70 miles north of Alaska to see whether 27 billion barrels of oil are there

• If we want the U.S. to remain strong and dominant in the world, look to the north

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