11mo ago

What lies beneath: the growing threat to the hidden network of cables that power the internet

www.theguardian.com What lies beneath: the growing threat to the hidden network of cables that power the internet

Last month large parts of Tonga were left without internet when an undersea cable was broken. It’s a scenario that is far more common than is understood

"Modern consumers have come to imagine the internet as something unseen in the atmosphere – an invisible “cloud” just above our heads, raining data down upon us. Because our devices aren’t tethered to any cables, many of us believe the whole thing is wireless, says Starosielski, but the reality is far more extraordinary..."

8 comments

Most people these days seem to think that "wifi" is synonymous with the internet itself. No point trying to educate them.
- I disagree. We need a drivers license before we use a car. Maybe we need an Internet license before we get a shiny world wide connected magic rock that lets us watch videos of cats?
  
  this would make the internet so much better apart from the increased difficulty for grandparents that post useful information about their old secret tricks to doing this, that, or the other thing learned from decades or work or hobby experience. not that google makes it easy to find this kind of thing any more...
  
  I'd rather not have internet access being gatekept by government. I would settle for curriculum in public school that covers the basics and is not just a MS Word/big tech product dependency inducement like what we already have.

It's been over a decade since I wanted to create a comprehensive series of videos of how PCs and internet work.
I'm not in any way articulate, nor I can teach, but I do have some IT experience. Hopefully I will find some time soon.
- That sounds really interesting, I hope you find the time to do it someday!

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