material maps

wikipedia is a great resource for finding out about materials in detail, and one of the best reasons are these world maps showing world production based on the british geological survey’s 2005 world mineral production (available as a free pdf). at a glance you can see the major producers for almost any mineral. here are some of the metals most essential to consumer electronics:

World Gold Production in 2005

World Platinum Production in 2005

World Aluminum Production in 2005

World Copper Production in 2005

World Cadmium Production in 2005

World Tin Production in 2005