5 ms·
For point 1, is the depth of the ocean significant compared to the distances traversed? My back-of-the-envelope math suggests it’s less than half a percent for
by danaliv 6y ago
For point 1, is the depth of the ocean significant compared to the distances traversed? My back-of-the-envelope math suggests it’s less than half a percent for a cable from New York to England. (6 miles down + 6 miles up, divided by rough great circle distance of 2600 nautical miles.)
I would think a bigger factor would be that the cables (IIRC) don't go in straight lines (which you did allude to).
- sandworm101 6y agoCorrect. The ocean bottom is relatively flat once away from the continents. Also, the submarine cable actually has a very slight advantage over a surface cable as at several thousand feet below it is following a slightly smaller radius curve. I'm waiting for the HFT firm to bore a literally strait hole between London and New York. Then we know that HFT has gone too far.
- foota 6y agoThink of the shipping opportunities!
- chokeartist 6y ago> I'm waiting for the HFT firm to bore a literally strait hole between London and New York. Then we know that HFT has gone too far. No need. They have Starlink now (or soon).
- firethief 6y agoSurely it would be easier to use neutrinos?
- bigiain 6y agoLike the Alameda Weehawken Burrito Tunnel? (Since somebody else has already mentioned the pinboardiness of these comments... https://idlewords.com/2007/04/the_alameda_weehawken_burrito_tunnel.htm https://idlewords.com/2007/04/the_alameda_weehawken_burrito_... )
- SignalNotSecure 6y agoI thought quantum entanglement solved the HFT use case
- lxgr 6y agoQuantum entanglement does not allow FTL communications (which would break causality).
- tecleandor 6y agoAh, but you don't need FTL, you just need FTF (Faster Than Fiber) :D
- lxgr 6y agoWe're not too far off – HFT is already digging tunnels [0] and building microwave relay paths [1]. [0] https://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/14/opinion/krugman-three-expensive-milliseconds.html https://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/14/opinion/krugman-three-exp... [1] https://www.amsterdamtrader.com/2014/09/hft-in-my-backyard.html https://www.amsterdamtrader.com/2014/09/hft-in-my-backyard.h...
- jholman 6y agoAgreed. As we probably all know, the earth is smoother than a regulation billiard ball wrapped in 1000-grit sandpaper.