Re: So....how was it really tested?
Yup - I was wondering that. 7,456 miles of production cable wound around the lab or even the whole campus sounds somewhat impactical. And possibly slightly expensive.
So, unless it was a bank of reels of the fibre equivalent of 44 swg copper wire I wonder how they got their results. We need to see this repeated in a real life installation somewhere - not necessarily 7,456 miles but long enough to prove the concept.
It also raises a somewhat off topic question in my mind. I know very little about fibre optic cables. I gather they are a plastics material. I'm wondering how long they last - and does the light causes degradation (eg yellowing or an increase in opacity of the fibre)? If this can / does happen will increasing optical power significantly shorten the effective life of the cable?
Biting the hand that feeds IT
