The Interplanetary Internet: Is Google Building the Ansible?
This snippet from an interview with Vinton Cerf (widely referred to as one of the “founding fathers of the Internet”, and currently the “Chief Internet Evangelist” at Google) caught my attention; although it’s a far cry from an Ansible based on Philotic Connections, it’s interesting that we (humanity, that is) are working on the protocols for interplanetary communication already.
Orson Scott Card had vision when he crafted the Ansible communication concept for Ender’s Game. But this is a baby step toward execution:
Question: Tell us about your work on the Interplanetary Internet.
Vinton: I’m working with JPL (Jet Propulsion Laboratories) on protocols for interplanetary communications. We’ve been testing in various terrestrial locations, solving such problems as delay and disruption of communications caused, for instance, by planetary rotations. We’re now confident we have solid protocols and plan to test them:
- 2009 - test new protocols on the International Space Station
- 2011 - test on the Deep Impact project
- Further propagation of the network, protocols and standards mission by mission to gradually build a solid, dependable communications system in space.
Source: Closed Loop Marketing at WebbyConnect, Chief Google Evangelist: Live with Vinton Cerf!
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