Friedman starts the book out discussing the "10 flatteners" of the world and how these flatteners lead to the "triple convergence" (For a brief description of these ideas check Wikipedia). For most of us nerds, the technologies he discusses are nothing new. Using a big picture approach he wraps up these ideas with the triple convergence, provided points of view that, at the very least, will challenge you to think. It’s after he discusses triple convergence when the book really starts to get interesting. Friedman begins to discuss the affects these ideas are having and will have on societies, politics, outsourcing, wealth, schooling, and religion. He covers these ideas quite extensively, so I'll just cover a few of my favorites (which happen to be very touchy topics): politics and religion.

In discussing the effects of the triple convergence, Friedman refers to Karl Marx's manifesto which, in part, says in a purely capitalistic society, there will be no wars over religion or politics because those will affect business. Friedman then looks at how companies with global supply chains in two countries will work together, because, despite their differing political or religious views it will be in their best financial interest to maintain peace, in fear the company's who's supply chain is in their country, might pull out. This in turn causes the country to loose large revenue generators. Losing these generators would cause a loss in funding for schooling, technology, home grown business and the silly religious or political wars they would like to engage. Intriguing concepts...I think so.

For technologists this book should light a fire under your ass. Friedman reiterates how we have lead the race on technology, but as technology is becoming cheaper and other countries are focusing more on education in science and technology, we the American technologists, are not just competing with our fellow American's for a job or for the race to the next big idea. We are now competing with many other countries in the world. This also means we are collaborating with many other countries.

Overall the first half of the book was pretty boring, but as he started into the application of the topics he covers in the first half the book, the book became very interesting. I recommend this book to any techie who is interested in how tech fits in the big picture.