For those wondering "what", it's finally named in paragraphs 8 and 9, or 9 and 10, depending on how you count: Such is the story of the “three-napkins protocol

For those wondering "what", it's finally named in paragraphs 8 and 9, or 9 and 10, depending on how you count: Such is the story of the “three-napkins protocol,” more formally known as Border Gateway Protocol, or BGP. At its most basic level, BGP helps routers decide how to send giant flows of data across the vast mesh of connections that make up the Internet. With infinite numbers of possible paths — some slow and meandering, others quick and direct — BGP gives routers the information they need to pick one, even though there is no overall map of the Internet and no authority charged with directing its traffic.