Glenn Reynolds makes a good point about the far-reaching disruption to the modern supply chain that a single disaster across the globe can have. From his article:

Japan’s earthquake was in some ways a triumph of preparedness: Thanks to strict building codes, not a single building in Tokyo collapsed. But the earthquake, and the tsunami it produced, have had impacts that go well beyond the immediate.

In particular, the damage is exposing the extent to which modern supply-chain management has produced a system that is so lean it lacks the reserve capacity needed to cope with disasters.

In manufacturing, plants have been idled around the world because Japanese factories — or often, a single Japanese factory — serve as the sole source for a vital component. With the factories sidelined by damage or power outages, the components are unavailable, and production has to stop.

Worldmapper has collections of maps showing country size as indicated by income, age at death, Internet use, etc. Interesting.

Adorable! These Irish kids are learning about the basics.

Confidential to my oldest nephew: in just a few short years you’ll be putting this great advice to work.

It’s a virtual university. Recommended by Bill Gates.

Here’s a good primer on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and other social networking sites your grandchildren (and children) are using.