A shortage of something you've never heard of

Ever heard of neodymium? Do you know what it is? If you do, go to the head of the class -- you're one of the few.

Neodymium is an exotic metal that is critical for the manufacture of specialized magnets and other electronic technologies, including some of the leading forms of "green" power-generation. Like vanadium and molybdenum, which in very small quantities are critical to the manufacture of some high-strength steels, neodymium has always been taken for granted. But it turns out that virtually all the world's neodymium comes from Communist China, and China is now clamping down and restricting the supply of it to the rest of the world. See story in the U.K. Independent. (Hat tip: Slashdot.org.)