A nice, quick intro to the physical infrastructure of the internet. Doesn’t really go into how all those pieces work – there’s no discourse on the technology behind a router – but does build a mental image of the boxes, buildings, and people that keep the world connected.
Three things I learned:
- ARPAnet's first Internet Message Processing machine was installed at UCLA in 1969. The machines were manufactured on the East Coast, but only West Coast universities were open to the idea of the network at the time.
- In 1998, The Netherlands passed two laws to pave the way for fiber everywhere. One law required landowners to give up right of way for holes to be dug, second law required any company digging a hole to lay fiber to also let other companies lay their own cable in the same hole and share the costs. The one-two punch made it cheaper and easier to lay fiber, and also blocked anyone getting a monopoly.
- The busiest route in the world is between London and New York, with more internet traffic than any other line.
