The state's clean air policies are also forcing the development of technologies that end up in cars nationwide.
The State Department is encouraging the development of technologies that enable users to circumvent restrictions on the Internet.
It financed the development of technologies that led to the creation of the Internet, GPS and stealth technology.
And the research and development of technologies that could lead to a starship, he said, would likely create useful military spinoffs.
Before leaving the United States, Mr. Bush had sought to allay European fears about the Bush administration's efforts to fight global warming by promising to lead the way on the research and development of technologies that would reduce emissions.
The Bush administration's position is that it wants to work to cut emissions by leading the world in the research and development of technologies that will combat global warming without hurting American industries and the country's economy.
Opponents, including some telecommunications companies that provide broadband Internet service, said the approach would create uncertainty and legal battles that would slow the development of technologies that could benefit consumers.
And the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 has already criminalized the development of technologies that can be used to avoid copyright restrictions, making it effectively impossible for most people to illegally share certain copyrighted materials, including video games.
While that may not sound like many years, the scientists said the emissions cuts would buy critical time for nature and for human society to adapt, as well as for development of technologies that might help further reduce emissions.
It is likely that these kinds of challenges will be intensified by the continuing liberalization of the international legal market and by the development of technologies that enable lawyers to give advice from their offices to clients in distant and very different jurisdictions.
Once again, a key factor that could mitigate this dire forecast is the potential development of technologies that could remove carbon dioxide from the air and thus cool down the planet much faster than the Earth on its own can through natural processes.
