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We pretty much have globally accessible high speed internet though, and poverty is the main factor blocking significant further access, not mountains.
by SiempreViernes 7y ago
We pretty much have globally accessible high speed internet though, and poverty is the main factor blocking significant further access, not mountains.
- fastball 7y agoWe absolutely do not have globally accessible high speed internet. Starlink means you can be doing research in the middle of the Amazon and have good internet. Antarctica. Middle of the ocean. Wherever. Sure, population centres are all connected to the internet by now, but that's really not what I'm talking about. Also, a good way to make internet cheaper (so that those in poverty have access) is to provide more alternatives to access / competition.
- SiempreViernes 7y agoNone of those noble cases are actually what it's being built for though, the 100 scientists in the Amazonas aren't the reason you put up 1500 satellites in one year. Likewise, those in poverty living far from population centres (by the way, those are the places with most of the people) are better served by being gifted 10 bricks so they can build an actual stove.
- fastball 7y agoWhat is it being built for, if not globally available (as in, actually anywhere in the globe), high-speed, low latency, low cost internet? It's built for whoever gets utility out of it and will pay for it, those "noble cases" included. It's not for them, but it enables them. The internet can tell you how to build a better stove, farm better, raise animals better, discourage you from barbaric rituals that don't actually have the effect you believe them to have, etc. Arguably the poorest, most ignorant of the world are the same people that need the knowledge the internet can provide the most.
- bdamm 7y agoI agree with all but the last sentence. The Internet is not always correlated with a happier life and the Internet isn’t sure to educate the ignorant.
- fastball 7y agoI did not claim either of those things. Internet access gives you access to actual knowledge. Yes, it also gives access to fake news and farmville, but I think those latter concerns are less important when you are having sex with babies to make your AIDS go away.
- shaklee3 7y agoThird time I'm saying this, but starlink is not for consumers. It's not a "cheaper" alternative to your current ISP. None of your comment is based on any of the information put out by SpaceX.
- fastball 7y agoI did not say that Starlink is cheaper. I said a good way to make something cheaper is to increase competition / competing ways to deliver something.