Mapping the Internet

The changing shape of internet networking and massive traffic increases are creating problems for scientists in charge of understanding and tracing the many intricate connections on the net. They note that peering (companies connecting their networks together) has greatly impacted networking practices, taking traffic away from main internet companies. Instead the internet "has begun to cascade in torrents of data on the edges of the network, as if a river in flood were carving new channels". Studies have produced various results, some which argue current network trends are dangerous to the stability and security of the internet, and others which argue that despite traffic increases the internet has not changed much at all.

For more information on this study, please click here.