Chinese inventor Tao Xiangli welds a component of his self-made robot in the the yard of his house in Beijing on May 15

On The Shores of Clear Lake ca. 1896, printed 1924

Roadside Stand, vicinity Birmingham, Alabama. 1936, printed ca. 1971 by Jim Dow.

An aerial view of the brine pools and processing areas of the Soquimich lithium mine on the Atacama salt flat, the largest lithium deposit currently in production, in the Atacama desert of northern Chile, on Jan. 10, 2013.

A worker protects his face from the sun as he inspects machinery at the Rockwood Lithium plant on the Atacama salt flat, the largest lithium deposit currently in production, in the Atacama desert of northern Chile, on Jan. 8, 2013.

A view of samples of lithium carbonate processed from the Rockwood Lithium mine on the Atacama salt flat, the largest lithium deposit currently in production, in Antofagasta, northern Chile, on Jan. 14, 2013.

An aerial view of the brine pools and processing areas of the Soquimich lithium mine on the Atacama salt flat, the largest lithium deposit currently in production, in the Atacama desert of northern Chile, on Jan. 10, 2013.

Overview of a mining camp on the Salar del Hombre Muerto, or Dead Man's Salt Flat, an important source of lithium at around 13,123 feet above sea level on the border of the northern Argentine provinces of Catamarca and Salta, on Oct. 28, 2012.

Braulio Lopez of Galaxy Resources lithium mining division carts halite concentrate at the Salar del Hombre Muerto, or Dead Man's Salt Flat, an important source of lithium at around 13,123 feet above sea level on the border of the northern Argentine provinces of Catamarca and Salta, on Oct. 28, 2012.

A llama stands next to a cactus growing on Incahuasi Island above the Uyuni salt lake, which holds the world's largest reserve of lithium, located at 11,995 ft above sea level in southwestern Bolivia, on Nov. 7, 2012.

A worker from Galaxy Resources lithium mining division puts on a mask before going to work at the Salar del Hombre Muerto, or Dead Man's Salt Flat, an important source of lithium at around 13,123 feet above sea level on the border of the northern Argentine provinces of Catamarca and Salta, on Oct. 28, 2012.

Laboratory technicians Gabriela Torrez and Bernabe Apaza analyze brine samples at the lithium pilot plant on the southern edge of the Uyuni salt lake, which holds the world's largest reserve of lithium, located at 11,995 ft above sea level in southwestern Bolivia, on Nov. 5, 2012.

Tourists prepare for a picnic on the Uyuni salt lake, which holds the world's largest reserve of lithium, located at 11,995 ft above sea level in southwestern Bolivia, on Nov. 7, 2012.

A couple type on their smartphones at a shopping mall in Bangkok, March 21. People can be found glued to their smartphones at airports, on trains, in restaurants and even while walking on the street, creating a disconnection from their immediate surroundings. Smartphone sales are expected to continue to surge in 2013 with some 918 million units to be bought worldwide.

Women look at their smartphones while walking together outside a shopping mall in Bangkok, March 19.

Friends looking at their smartphones at a coffee shop in a shopping mall in Bangkok, March 19.

People using their smartphones and tablets in a shopping mall in Bangkok, March 19.

A man using a tablet and a woman using a smartphone as another young woman passes by talking on a smartphone at a shopping mall in Bangkok, March 21.

Students wearing traditional dresses walk near a 1960-era steam locomotive in the Carlos Antonio Lopez Railway maintenance shed, currently a museum, before dancing at a cultural fair in Sapucai, Paraguay, on Oct. 12. The railway, inaugurated on Oct. 21, 1861 for cargo and passengers, shut down in 2001 before being resurrected in 2012 as a tourism attraction. Train company president Marcelo Wagner says foreign investors have expressed interest in revitalizing the railway commercially with electric powered trains, but until plans are concreted, the steam powered trains will continue as a tourist attraction.

An abandoned Carlos Antonio Lopez Railway passenger car sits empty at the Luque train station in Paraguay on Oct. 12.

A 1960-era steam locomotive from the Carlos Antonio Lopez Railway carries tourists in Asuncion, Paraguay on Oct. 7.

Vapor exits a 1960-era steam locomotive from the Carlos Antonio Lopez Railway as it runs in Asuncion, Paraguay on Oct. 7.

A tourist takes pictures as he rides the Carlos Antonio Lopez Railway 1960-era steam locomotive in Asuncion, Paraguay on Oct. 7.

A Google data center in in Douglas Country, Ga.

A Google technician works on some of the computers in the Dalles, Ore., data center.

A Google data center in Hamina, Finland. Google is opening a virtual window into the secretive data centers that serve as its nerve center. The unprecedented peek is being provided through a new website unveiled Wednesday, Oct. 17, 2012. The site features photos from inside some of the eight data centers that Google Inc. already has running in the U.S., Finland and Belgium.

Apple Store employees applaud a customer after he bought a new iPhone 5 on the day of its release at Covent Garden in London on Sept. 21.

Ralf Marth celebrates being the first customer at an Apple store to get an iPhone 5 in Munich Sept. 21.

James and Tamsyn Vohradsky hold up their new phones after becoming the first buyers of Apple's new iPhone 5 from the flagship store in Sydney, on Sept. 21.

First in line, Ryan Williams, reacts as he enters the Apple store to purchase the first new Apple iPhone 5 at the Apple Store in Covent Garden in London Sept. 21.

Meagan Capp, left, and Cora Walker break for a cigarette dressed as Sheik and Link from Legend of Zelda outside Seattle's PAX convention on Sept. 1, 2012.

Destiny Siefert finishes lunch outside Seattle's PAX Convention, Sept. 1. Siefert sports what she calls "Femamerica" as a female version of Captain America.

Josh Nebe takes on the persona of a broke and disenchanted storm trooper outside Seattle's Convention Center, Sept. 1. Nebe's costume was inspired by a demotivatinoal poster popular on the internet.

Jesse Skellington fills his chalice at a Taco Del Mar during Seattle's PAX convention, Sept. 1. Skellington is less cosplayer and more LARPer, or live action role player. Skellington takes on a persona all his own in lieu of characters from any franchise.

Michael Batin waits to buy bottled water inside Seattle's PAX convention on Sept. 1. Batin cosplayed for the first time at PAX where he sported a hip-hop clone trooper costume, boom box not pictured.

Tryston Adachi, right, and Jackie Cunard withdraw money while sporting "steampunk pirate" themed costumes during Seattle's PAX Convention on Sept. 1. Adachi explains the theme as "something out of Jules Verne's mind."