The Internet Is at the Bottom of the Sea
And no, sharks are not eating it.
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Show Notes
We need the internet. No, seriously. In 2023, the digital realm isn’t so much a portal as it is the undercurrent of our lives: The web carries our culture, our communication, our bank accounts — and, yes, our global security.
But all of that traffic flows through a series of cables at the bottom of the ocean. And lately, we’ve been worrying a lot about it up on dry land: Asking what happens when something — or someone — cuts those cables. Should we really be so worried?
This is a story about volcanoes and sharks, entrepreneurs and politicians. It’s also about none of those things. Welcome back to Things That Go Boom.
GUESTS: Nicole Starosielski, New York University; Marian Kupu, Broadcom Broadcasting; Ryan Wopschall, ICPC; Darren Griffiths, Optic Marine; Camino Kavanagh, King’s College London
ADDITIONAL READING:
Inside the Subsea Cable Firm Secretly Helping America Take on China, Joe Brock, Reuters
The Undersea Network, Nicole Starosielski, Duke University Press
Wading Murky Waters: Subsea Communications and Responsible State Behavior, Camino Kavanaugh, United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research
Decoupling is Already Happening Under The Sea, Elisabeth Braw, Foreign Policy