Did you know that?

We know some things about the future. For instance, we know that the shape of the world has changed -- It’s Flat. The World is Flat, by New York Times reporter, Thomas Friedman, makes a case for a world that is becoming increasingly globalized, resulting in a flattening of economic power.

Our Students • Our Worlds David Warlick

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Friedman tells lots of short stories in his books -- short stories that can start with, “Did you know that..”

Did you know that if Wal•Mart was a country, it would be China’s largest trading partner.

Our Students • Our Worlds David Warlick

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Did you know that UPS ships over 13.5 million packages a day. This means that at any moment, 2% of the worlds gross domestic product (GDP) is in the back of a UPS truck.

Our Students • Our Worlds David Warlick

It’s a measure of how global the world has become.

It’s a measure of how cooperative the world has become.

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Did you know that in 2003, 46% of all Chinese college graduates earned degrees in engineering. In the U.S., it was only 5%.

Does this concern us?

Our Students • Our Worlds David Warlick

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Did you know that more than half of NASA’s 18,000 employees is over the age of 50?

Did you know that the number of NASA employees over 60 outnumbers those younger than 30? ...by a margin of 3 to 1

Does this concern us?

Our Students • Our Worlds David Warlick

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Certainly it concerns us. It’s why we are putting so much emphasis, effort, and funding into science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM).

However, there is increasing thinking and writing about the critical importance of the creative skills in working today’s economic environment.

Our Students • Our Worlds David Warlick

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