Five Best Ideas of the Day: March 23

1. Modern American life — from smartphones to cars and even missiles — depends on rare earth elements. But we’ve let China take over the industry.

By Lesley Stahl on 60 Minutes

2. Men in New York own 2.5 times as many businesses as women. A new program aims to innovate against that gap.

By Alexis Stephens in Next City

3. In 2014, global violence surged, drawing a sharp contrast between the developed world and everywhere else.

By Peter Apps in the Project for the Study of the 21st Century

4. Tunisia’s response to a terrorist attack provides a hopeful model.

By the editorial board of the Christian Science Monitor

5. Want to change how you see the world? Rewire your brain by learning a second language.

By Nicholas Weiler in Science Magazine

The Aspen Institute is an educational and policy studies organization based in Washington, D.C.