R7 - The Internet and Ubiquitous Networks

The first article I read, the required reading, entitled "The Internet" from AccessScience gave a full background and breakdown of how the internet works. I found this article very interesting because I don't generally thing about how the internet actually works. Prior to reading this article I knew that the internet is run and supported through servers. This article explained that in fact when information is sent, it is sent in packets which are broken down and sent in pieces and then reassembled on delivery. This article also went over some very general terms such as TCP/IP that I have definitely seen before but never realized what they actually meant for how the internet works. It was also interesting learning about how domains are beginning to be governed and monitored. I had never heard of the term "cybersquatting" before but it is an interesting idea that this could be considered property infringement. I guess I would disagree with that statement because I don't think you automatically own a website that uses your name. I would still say that a website is a just a piece of property that can be bought. I guess it will be interesting to see how legal rules and regulations develop in this area in the future.

The second article I read titled, "Ubiquitous transportation network sensors", also from AccessScience. A ubiquitous network is a network that provides services anywhere to anyone or anything on any device. This transfer of data can be done through many different methods all of which are internet based. This particular article talks about ubiquitous networks that deal with transportation information, such as sensors measuring traffic flows and incidents and sending drivers this information in real time so that the driver can make decisions based off this information. I think these sort of integrations projects are a really amazing way of using the internet and its data transferring capabilities in order to make regular daily tasks a more intelligent based system. In terms of transportation a lot of these systems have already been put in place, especially in terms of public transportation such as seeing how long it will take for a train to arrive at a station. Using this sort of technology in terms of automotive transportation is a little more recent. Some of the ways that I have encountered this technology is with the large electronic signs along highways that tell you how long it will take to get from point to point ahead of you on that highway. I think these signs are already a very help technology because if it says it will take an extreme amount of extra time you can take this into consideration and try to find an alternative route. I have also encountered this technology in new gps systems that come with a traffic feature that is updated in real time, alerts you to heavy traffic on your intended route, and most times will automatically reroute you to the shortest route around the issue. The article goes on talk about how these sensors are going to become more refined. Becoming very small, easy to install, and battery powered. One of these issues still being looked into is the conservation of power for these sensors. There are also many different data transfer systems that these sensors can use in order to alert you. These systems have different benefits and drawbacks usually based on how far the data can be transferred and at what speeds the data can be transferred. This article was interesting and I believe this is an area that is the next step in data transfer technology and ubiquitous networks seem to be something that could be applicable to many different industries. On a side note, one interesting fact I found in this article when it talked about the systems that can be used for data transfer, it mentioned that mobile devices can receive a signal while you are traveling at speeds up to 155 mph. I had never though about how speed would affect your cell phone from finding data but apparently there is a limit on how fast you can go and still use your cell phone.