As computer networking continues to grow into its role as a core infrastructure of our world, our lab believes that this maturing discipline has much to learn from the realm of civil engineering. Namely, we believe that the computer networking discipline should follow the following key guidelines from civil engineering ethics:
- "First and foremost, protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public;
- Enhance the quality of life for humanity;
- Express professional opinions truthfully and only when founded on adequate knowledge and honest conviction;
- Endeavor to be of service in civic affairs;
- Acknowledge the diverse historical, social, and cultural needs of the community, and incorporate these considerations in our work;
- Consider the capabilities, limitations, and implications of current and emerging technologies when part of our work; and
- Report misconduct to the appropriate authorities where necessary to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public."
As civil engineers, our lab believes it is one of our core responsibilities to understand how the public accesses the core infrastructure that is broadband and share our expertise, when appropriate, on policy matters. To do so, amongst other projects, our lab performs Big Data analysis on broadband in the continental United States. Primarily using large government datasets from the Federal Communications Commission and the United States Census Bureau, amongst other sources, we explore topics in the following general areas:
- Broadband Funding
- Broadband Deployment
- Broadband Performance
Some of our recent work has focused on exploring demographic and density factors in broadband deployment and funding, as well as advising policy makers on broadband performance metrics for the FCC's upcoming broadband labels.
Sources:
SIGCOMM 2022 - Networking: The Newest Civil Engineering Challenge - Henning Schulzrinne
