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Digital Planet: Splinternet Risks

Factual: Science & Nature

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22/03/2022 GMT

Splinternet Risks

BBC World Service - Digital Planet, Splinternet Risks

Are fears of breakaway internets and global incompatibilities well-founded?

Could new geo-economic politics split the internet into factions? Also, using AI to find fallen meteorites and how NFTs in games might blur the lines between labour and leisure.

The shifting geopolitical economics following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has led to the reappearance of the word “Splinternet”. In recent years some countries have created the physical infrastructure to potentially run many internet services outside of the reach of the global network of networks most people know as the internet. As sanctions are imposed, popular websites and social networks blocked, and economic lines are drawn, could some countries like Russia and China withdraw completely, developing different protocols of connection within their borders – and maybe beyond - that might become incompatible with those of the current internet? Emma Taylor, CEO of Oxford Information Labs, drops into Digital Planet to discuss the fears.

When scientists analyze fallen meteorites they provide invaluable clues about the history of our solar system. Antarctica is a good place to look as they are seldom disturbed, and arguably easier to spot. Yet It is a vast and hard to access area. Could big data and AI provide a guide to help researchers know where to look? Veronica Tollenaar and colleagues at the Glaciology Laboratory at the Université libre de Bruxelles, in Belgium think so. In a recent paper in the journal Science Advances, Veronica and her colleagues have described their algorithm for constructing a “where to go” list, rather like a treasure map, to rank the locations most likely to bear the rocky treasure.

Whilst most games are obviously played for fun, many of them sure can feel like unrelenting hard work. Hours spent to “win” trophies or “earn” credits, are increasingly “sold” or transferred between players within these games. Could NFTs transform these sorts of activities into new economic structures?  BBC’s Chris Berrow reports. 

Presented by Gareth Mitchell with expert commentary from Ghislaine Boddington.

Technical Production by Giles Aspen
Produced by Alex Mansfield

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