The salt flats of Bolivia's Salar de Uyuni make up one of the most mesmerizing and otherworldly landscapes on the planet.

The Salar de Uyuni stretches 2.5 million acres across a high plateau in Bolivia. Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert!

But as the vice president knows, no pitch about lithium as Bolivia’s economic salvation is complete without addressing the source of that lithium: the Salar de Uyuni. The 4,000-square-mile salt ...