A Coming Shortage?

This kind of thing is fascinating to me: An impending shortage of a material largely-unknown to the general population used for making magnets is causing a stir of research to find a replacement. Magnets, which play an important role in the operation of electronics, are made up a various metal combinations, neodymium being the most efficient known. Currently the United States relies on China for their supply, a precarious position to be in if the spigot is closed off.

This is interesting because in our current political environment we drone on endlessly about silly things: death panels, haggling over tiny pockets of oil drilling rights, accusations of socialism/fascism, etc. All the while, smaller, much less flashy but no less important problems, go unnoticed. Sigh.