The microchip that runs Apple's popular music player is made in India, Taiwan, China and Silicon Valley. Is this an example of how globalization works to everyone's benefit — or a sign that the world economy is about to roll over America?

Salon staff writer Andrew Leonard is on special assignment to explore the impact of globalization on the U.S. "The world in the iPod" is Part 1 of his series "How the World Works," which takes readers from the vacant business parks of Silicon Valley, Calif., to the high-tech boomtowns of China.