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40G connection used to dry laundry

File this one under “old uses for new technology”. Swedish septuagenarian Sigbritt Lothberg had the world’s fastest internet connection, and what did she use it for? Drying her laundry, according to Swedish paper The Local. “It was a big bit of gear and it got pretty warm,” the paper reports.

It turns out that Sigbritt is not just any 75 year old, she’s mother to Peter Lothberg, an optical internet guru working for Cisco. Lothberg’s logic for setting up a 40 Gbit/s connection to his mum’s house seemed to be “if my mother can make it work, then anyone can.” There’s a presentation with all the details on his company’s website here.

Check out the photos, which show that’s no ordinary router Sigbritt is installing in her garage, its a 4-slot Cisco CRS-1. Lothberg says his aim is to show that high-speed, long distance networking can be affordable.

With a CRS-1? Surely a tumble drier would be cheaper?

Posted by Pauline Rigby on April 4, 2008 10:13 AM | Permalink