Telecommunications/Networks and Metcalfe's Law

       As the power of the computer increases, so do the capabilities of communications media 

including glass fibers, copper wires, and wireless communication systems. For example, 

scientists at Fujitsu and other companies have demonstrated the capacity to send data over a 

single strand of glass the diameter of a human hair at a speed of one trillion bits per second 

(Thornburg, 1997). At this rate the entire Library of Congress could be transmitted in seconds 

(Molitor, 1998), or 70 million simultaneous voice conversations could be sent on a single fiber 

(Tobias, 1993). Conventional copper wires cannot compete with these rates of transmission, but 

by using an Asynchronous Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) transmissions in excess of six million 

bits per second can be achieved. Many cable television providers are providing broadband 

services of up to ten million bits per second over copper wire systems as well. Much like the 

phenomenon with computer memory, as these speeds increase, the cost of using these services 

decreases. Take for example the consistent decrease in long distance telephone rates over the 

last few years; the ability to transmit enormous numbers of calls through one wire has driven 

prices down substantially. 

The combination of better, cheaper computers and increased bandwidth has caused a boon in 

the network community (i.e. the Internet). Bob Metcalfe, inventor of the Ethernet, suggested that 

the power of a network increases proportionally by the square of the number of users. Over time 

this has become known as Metcalfe's Law. Like Moore's Law, Metcalfe's Law has played a major 

role in shaping the business world, and now it is beginning to affect education. Simply put, 

Metcalfe's Law states that the more people that are connected to a network, the more powerful 

that network becomes. As millions connect to the Internet, the Network of networks, the power of 

sharing information and ideas grows. Education is in the business of sharing information and 

ideas, making Metcalfe's Law a force that will play a major role in shaping the institution in the 

years ahead.