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The Best Science Writing Online 2012
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The U.S. notoriously lags other countries when it comes to Internet speed. One recent report from Web analyst Akamai Technologies puts us in 14th place, far behind front-runner South Korea and also trailing Hong Kong, Japan and Romania, among other countries. The sticking point over faster broadband has been: Who will pay for it? Telecommunications companies have been leery of investing in infrastructure unless they are certain of demand for extra speed. American consumers, for their part, have been content to direct much of their Internet use to e-mail and social networks, which operate perfectly well at normal broadband speeds, and they have not been willing to pay a premium for speedier service.
The exception lies at the seat of learning. Universities and research institutes are always looking for a quicker flow of bits. “We think our researchers will be left behind without gigabit speeds,” says Elise Kohn, a former policy adviser for the Federal Communications Commission. Kohn and Blair Levin, who helped to develop the FCC’s National Broadband Plan—a congressionally mandated scheme to ensure broadband access to all Americans—are leading a collection of 29 universities spread across the country in piloting a network of one-gigabit-per-second Internet connections. The group, the University Community Next Generation Innovation Project—more commonly referred to as Gig.U—includes Duke University, the University of Chicago, the University of Washington and Arizona State University.
The average U.S. Internet speed today is 5.3 megabits per second, so Gig.U’s Internet would be many times faster than those available today, allowing users to download the equivalent of two high-definition movies in less than one minute and to watch streaming video with no pixelation or other interruptions. By comparison, the average Internet speed in South Korea is 14.4 megabits per second, and the country has pledged to connect every home to the Internet at one gigabit per second by 2012.
The U.S. gigabit networks will vary from site to site, depending on the approach that different Internet service providers propose to meet the differing needs of Gig.U members. “All our members are focused on next-generation networks, although some will need more than a gigabit, and others will need less,” Kohn says. Gig.U’s request-for-information period runs through November to solicit ideas from the local service providers upgrading to faster networks. These ideas will ultimately be funded by Gig.U members, as well as any nonprofits and private-sector companies interested in the project. Gig.U intends to accelerate the deployment of next-generation networks in the U.S. by encouraging researchers—students and professors alike—to develop new applications and services that can make use of ultrafast data-transfer rates.
This article was originally published with the title Gig.U Is Now in Session.
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5 Comments
Add CommentI live in Australia and we buy internet access in blocks. So if you want more internet you pay a higher price.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisWhen I was in London recently, ads on TV were advertising unlimited internet(broadband) for one low price per month. I am sure that this would fill available network capacity yet not offer enough profit-making incentive to expand the networks.
I am not sure how the United States sells internet access to consumers, but if they sold it in blocks, like Australia, there would be more money to improve the network(speed upgrades).
The United States has backed away from CAPITALISM, the system of WEALTH CREATION that allowed it to be FIRST in the world due to all the unleashed ENTREPRENEURSHIP.
Americans need to read Ayn Rand's "Capitalism: An Unknown Ideal" to discover what makes Western culture superior to everything else.
It was CAPITALISM that America further developed (continuing a long line of precedents), that created and then ensured widespread distribution of new technologies that benefited the entire society.
As countries have become more socialist they have watched their standard of living deteriorate.
To rebuild a higher standard of living, the POWER structures that have accumulated need to be greatly reduced.
These power structures have provided a few individuals with a small, short-term dose of euphoria - meanwhile everyone else is crippled under a mass of red tape and the bureaucracies established to implement the giant nightmare.
I live in Australia and we buy internet access in blocks. So if you want more internet you pay a higher price.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisWhen I was in London recently, ads on TV were advertising unlimited internet(broadband) for one low price per month. I am sure that this would fill available network capacity yet not offer enough profit-making incentive to expand the networks.
I am not sure how the United States sells internet access to consumers, but if they sold it in blocks, like Australia, there would be more money to improve the network(speed upgrades).
The United States has backed away from CAPITALISM, the system of WEALTH CREATION that allowed it to be FIRST in the world due to all the unleashed ENTREPRENEURSHIP.
Americans need to read Ayn Rand's "Capitalism: An Unknown Ideal" to discover what makes Western culture superior to everything else.
It was CAPITALISM that America further developed (continuing a long line of precedents), that created and then ensured widespread distribution of new technologies that benefited the entire society.
As countries have become more socialist they have watched their standard of living deteriorate.
To rebuild a higher standard of living, the POWER structures that have accumulated need to be greatly reduced.
These power structures have provided a few individuals with a small, short-term dose of euphoria - meanwhile everyone else is crippled under a mass of red tape and the bureaucracies established to implement the giant nightmare.
Unfortunately, I don't seem to be able to freely access the report this article comments on. However, if this site is not completely wrong (http://www.jamaipanese.com/top-30-countries-ranked-by-fastest-internet-speeds/), then what I see is data that does not at all agree with your position that capitalism ought to be linked to higher internet speeds. It seems to me that contrary to English-speaking economic philosophy's constant claims that privatization will result in higher quality at lower speeds, we see yet another (after health care and education) example of socialized countries doing it better than the US and the UK, and the more highly socialized countries doing it better than the more moderately socialized ones (Germany, Australia).
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisSorry, replace the word speeds with costs.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisAyn Rand was a sociopath monster who didn't give a damn about anyone but her self. The "Capitalism" she advocated leads directly to slavery and very high crime rates. Not too surprising coming from someone that was forced to flee Russia by the revolution. Her direct rejection of morals and ethics tell us all we need to know about her. As Arvencheese said - socialist economies have better internet speeds and much broader access. The times of greatest productivity in America correspond to increases in protections and benefits for workers.
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