Currently reading The World is Flat by Thomas Friedman. It's a fascinating and objective look at how globalization has shrunk the world. Highly recomended reading.
Ditto that. About a quarter of the way through I started reading it from the viewpoint of, "Hey, I'm teaching in China right in the middle of this whole epoch." It has informed some of my teaching since reading it.
I bought a bi-lingual copy (E-C) and gave it to a Chinese education mover and shaker. Chinese educationists need to realize (IMHO) that a lot of what Friedman describes and suggests is a lot quicker way to (re)joining the world than setting up endless IELTS/Study Abroad Programs for well-to-do students at schlocky western universities.
At the same time, I got my right-wing dad back home ("damn furriners takin' all our jobs") to read it and he's thrown in the phrase "The world is flat" at least a half-dozen times in phone calls and emails. He's still not off the kool-aid, but that's a tough habit to break when you have Fox News on the tube in the living room and Rush Limbaugh on the kitchen/bedroom/car radio 24-7. At least Friedman's mantra has seeped into his consciousness.
Lots of stuff about Dalian in the book if you're teaching up there, BTW.