Anyone whose network connection has collapsed while surfing the Web knows that potholes aren't confined to pavement.

With everyone from online soothsayers to scientific researchers competing for space on the high-tech highway, the Internet has become a victim of its own success. Originally designed by scientists to be used for collaborative research projects, the Internet is weighted down by heavy traffic and can no longer support the people it was intended to serve.

Determined to find a way around information gridlock, UC Davis has joined 33 other research universities in building the next generation of Internet -- Internet II.

"There are new applications in line, but people aren't willing to use them because the current Internet infrastructure will not support them," says Russ Hobby, who has been writing Internet protocols since 1986 and is one of the five original Internet II architects.

"How often would you use your telephone if you thought the connection would break down in the middle of the conversation?" asks Hobby, emphasizing that the development of new networked applications depends on reliable infrastructure.

Hobby, director of Information Technology's Advanced Networked and Scientific Applications, is working with representatives from other universities to design a network thoroughfare that will support the following:

• Distance Learning: With an emphasis on lifelong learning, educators are looking for new ways to reach students of all ages. Distance learning technology, which allows an instructor to interact with students in remote classrooms, depends on reliable, real-time communication. Internet II will enable instructors to reserve network bandwidth in advance for distance learning programs. The network's higher transmission speeds will support traffic generated by video conferencing and other multimedia applications.

• Desktop Collaboration: From their desktops, faculty may engage in face-to-face discussions with colleagues at other universities. They will be able to share data, graphics, and reports and discuss the information while viewing it simultaneously.

• Remote Laboratories: Scientists may conduct experiments remotely from their desktops. For instance, a researcher at UC Davis may use the Stanford Linear Accelerator without traveling to Palo Alto.

• Desktop Astronomy: Astronomers may remotely control telescopes at national observatories. From a mediated classroom, a professor may use a computer to control telescopes at the Lick Observatory while students view the images projected from the computer screen.

• Telemedicine: A radiologist at the UCDMC Cancer Center may send an x-ray to a specialist on the east coast and then discuss the diagnosis while both doctors are viewing the image on their computer screen.

The implementation of these applications will depend on a network design and series of protocols (see Internet II Fact Sheet) that fully exploit the capabilities of broadband networks. Higher transmission speeds, the ability to reserve bandwidth, and the opportunity to prioritize delivery will pave the way for reliable, real-time communications.

"Researchers are interested in applications that utilize real-time desktop communication," says Hobby. "The Internet as it now exists is designed for 'best effort' delivery," he adds, explaining that performance is highly dependent upon the amount of traffic. The heavier the traffic the slower the delivery. When traffic gets too heavy, information can be derailed. With the explosion of network usage and the privatization of network services, gridlock is bound to happen. The Wall Street Journal recently reported that the number of households linked to the Internet doubled during the past year.

"We see tremendous growth not just in the number of people who use the Internet, but also in the kinds of applications that depend on network infrastructure," says Hobby. "When a new popular application comes out, we see a big jump in Internet usage."

Statistics gathered on e-mail and World Wide Web usage at UC Davis provide a snapshot of the demand for network services experienced throughout the nation. While the number of campus computer account holders has risen steadily, the traffic traveling across the UC Davis campus network has more than doubled in the past two years.

Class lists and online discussion groups are just two examples of applications that have given people new reasons to use e-mail -- and more opportunities to send messages.

The World Wide Web provides a double whammy. Scores of followers attracted by the integration of text, graphics, sound, and video have migrated to the Web. Because transmitting graphics requires more bandwidth than plain text, the Web has not only attracted new users, but users who carry lots of cargo.

"The implementation of new applications will depend on a reliable transportation model. In designing Internet II, our goal is to give researchers a roadway that provides a way around the traffic," says Hobby.

While the need for Internet II has been in discussion for over a year, the partnership between the 34 research universities who agreed to move forward with the Internet II project was formalized on October 1, 1996. Carole A. Barone, Associate Vice Chancellor for Information Technology, is a member of the National Telecommunications Task Force steering committee, the driving force behind Internet II.

"This partnership between universities gives us an opportunity to further the development and usage of the Internet in an atmosphere of research and sharing," says Barone. "Private companies do not always have the luxury of working collaboratively with colleagues from other organizations."

"Our long-term goal is to move the developments made through the Internet II project into the private sector, in much the same way the Internet has migrated from public to private management," Barone says. By repeating the cycle, higher education remains in a position to discover and implement new opportunities, and individuals in the private sector still have an opportunity to benefit from those discoveries.

Among the research universities participating in the Internet II project are UC Davis, UC Berkeley, the UC Office of the President, the California State University system, Stanford, Penn State, and the University of Michigan. They will work with the National Sciences Foundation, IBM, Cisco Systems, AT&T, MCI, Apple, Sun and other industry leaders to implement Internet II.

Funding for the Internet II project will be supported by grants and in-kind donations of services and products. Each of the universities present pledged $25,000 to fund the initial stages of the project. However, all participants will also be expected to contribute technical expertise and to have campus networks capable of interconnecting with Internet II.

Relying on the knowledge and expertise of those intimately involved with network design and research, Internet II will be a network thoroughfare that serves the needs of those in higher education.