FastCompany – “You might not realize it, but almost everywhere around you are rare metals from the earth. In your phone, computer, or any other LCD screen, for example, you’ll find a dash of indium, a soft, malleable metal that is in short supply in the Earth’s crust. Gallium, which can emit light from a jolt of electricity, is used in semiconductors, LEDs, lasers, and the solar industry. Rhenium, one of the rarest elements in the earth’s crust, is most commonly needed in jet engines. In other words, in our daily lives, we rely on many metals that are either uncommon, environmentally damaging, or located almost solely in places like China, Bolivia, or the war-torn Democratic Republic of Congo (i.e., not nations the U.S. is always on good terms with). What’s the risk that one day we won’t be able to depend on any of these elements? That’s the question asked by researchers from Yale University, who have now catalogued how much we’re in danger of putting all our eggs in one basket.”