I had the pleasure of hearing Thomas Friedman speak yesterday. He described the concepts in his excellent new book "The World Is Flat" and made the case for his notion that we are currently experiencing a significant turning point in the history of mankind. When I first read Friedman's book earlier this year it seemed to me I'd heard some of it before. The first writer I know that made a similar case was Douglas S. Robertson in his 1998 book "The New Renaissance" and later in 2003 with "Phase Change." Robertson's reasoning was more scientific and computer-oriented with less of the political implications of Friedman's book, but the underlying notion of a "phase change" right now was clearly the same.
"Anything you can't spell will never work." --Will Rogers