The following sections of this BookRags Literature Study Guide is offprint from Gale's For Students Series: Presenting Analysis, Context, and Criticism on Commonly Studied Works: Introduction, Author Biography, Plot Summary, Characters, Themes, Style, Historical Context, Critical Overview, Criticism and Critical Essays, Media Adaptations, Topics for Further Study, Compare & Contrast, What Do I Read Next?, For Further Study, and Sources.
(c)1998-2002; (c)2002 by Gale. Gale is an imprint of The Gale Group, Inc., a division of Thomson Learning, Inc. Gale and Design and Thomson Learning are trademarks used herein under license.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Encyclopedia of Popular Fiction: "Social Concerns", "Thematic Overview", "Techniques", "Literary Precedents", "Key Questions", "Related Titles", "Adaptations", "Related Web Sites". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Guide to Literature for Young Adults: "About the Author", "Overview", "Setting", "Literary Qualities", "Social Sensitivity", "Topics for Discussion", "Ideas for Reports and Papers". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
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Photonic networks, currently at the research stage, hold the potential of being able to utilize optical signals to transmit information. As with electrical signals, photonic signals would be capable of amplifying, switching, and processing signals. Photonics can, however, manipulate signals of very high bandwidth--far beyond the bandwidth achievable using electronics--resulting in a potential for exceptionally high information content.
Optical fiber cables enable great amounts of information to be transported over long distances at a much cheaper cost than using electrical cable or radio. The limitation to the amount of information carried in a photonic network currently is the information processing ability of the electronically driven computers at either end of the optical fibers. In the future, this electronic bottleneck would be removed by using photonic devices.
The development in early 2001 of an ultra-fast photonic switch is bringing the era of photonic devices closer to reality.