gigabit per second (Gb/s) transmission speed. Gigabit research and development takes place in two 

 ways: through a basic research program that provides the building blocks to move data at increasingly 

 faster rates with novel techniques such as all optical networking; and through the deployment of 

 testbed networks that use and prove the viability of these techniques. The testbeds provide an envi- 

 ronment for the development of advanced applications targeted toward the solution of HPCC Grand 

 Challenges. 



As these technologies for networking hardware and software are developed and shown to be viable 

 and cost-effective, they will be incorporated into the Interagency Internet. They will also provide a 

 foundation for supporting Grand and National Challenges and their further extension to the National 

 Information Infrastructure. Building on this foundation, the government and industrial partners will 

 develop prototypes for a future high capability commercial communications infrastructure for the 

 Nation. 



NREN Component Management 



Each agency implements its own NREN activities through normal agency structures and coordination 

 with OMB and OSTP. All 10 agencies participate in the NREN component as users. Multiagency 

 coordination is achieved through FCCSET, CPMES. HPCCIT. and the HPCCIT High Performance 

 Communications working group. 



Operation of the Interagency Internet is coordinated by the Federal Networking Council (PNC), which 

 consists of agency representatives. The FNC and its Executive Committee establish direction, provide 

 further coordination, and address technical, operational, and management issues through working 

 groups and ad hoc task forces. The FNC has established the Federal Networking Council Advisory 

 Committee, which consists of representati\es from several sectors including library sciences, educa- 

 tion, computers, telecommunications, information services, and routing vendors, to assure that pro- 

 gram goals and objectives reflect the interests of these broad sectors. 



A ccompUsh ments 



Increased Connectivity and Use of the Interagency Internet 



The Interagency Internet has experienced tremendous growth in the number of connections (and hence 

 the number of researchers) it supports, and in the amount of traffic that it carries. Significant leverag- 

 ing of the Interagency Internet activities have resulted in the following: 



J More than 6,000 regional, state, and local IP (Internet Protocol) networks in the U.S. are con- 

 nected as of March 1993. More than 12.000 such networks are connected worldwide. 



^More than 800 of the approximately 3.200 two-year and four-year colleges and universities in 

 the Nation are interconnected, including all of the schools in the top two categories ( "Research" 

 and "Doctorate") of the Carnegie classification. 



3 An estimated 1.000 U.S. high schools also are connected. The exact number is difficult to deter- 

 mine since regional networks have widely leveraged NSF and other agency funds to connect 



34 



