Computer Concepts in Action

Introduction:
Learn more about how data travels across the phone network and the Internet.

Directions:
Read the information below and apply what you learn to answer the questions.
Check your work carefully, and click Submit.

Partners in Communication
The worldwide telephone system is used to transmit information via a network, or collection of smaller networks, in order to allow any telephone user to reach another. This is made possible by telephone standards, guidelines, and procedures which are practiced worldwide.

There are two types of telephone networks:

• Standard uses physical connections (wires, cables or fiber optics).
• Cellular uses air waves (analog or digital).

The telephone network is used to send and receive different information types:

• Sound (voice)
• Images (fax documents)
• Data (modem)

Computers transmit information over the telephone system by using a modem to convert data from digital format (binary 1s and 0s) to analog format (waveform). Once the data is in analog format, it is sent over phone lines until it reaches another computer and is converted back into digital format.

The Internet, like the telephone network, is actually a collection of smaller networks that can communicate because of universal standards, guidelines, and procedures. A computer gets on to the Internet via an “onramp” of a smaller network, such as a LAN (local area network) or a home user's ISP (Internet service provider). The information then travels over an Internet backbone until it reaches the desired destination. Internet backbones are made of fiber optic lines which provide very fast transmission of data.

Different types of Internet connections include:

1.		Name two types of telephone networks.
2.		Why are telephone and Internet networks able to function across countries?
3.		Name four different types of Internet connections.
4.		What are the three types of information transmitted on the telephone network?