7 of 8

LESSON 5 · How Places Shape People

Geography of Internet Cables

The internet feels placeless, but 97% of international data travels through undersea fiber-optic cables laid along the ocean floor, routed to avoid quake zones and deep trenches.

The busiest corridor runs across the Atlantic between the US and Europe, carrying trillions in daily financial transactions. A major cable break could be an economic catastrophe. The internet has not erased geography; it created new dependencies.