Priority-based Lambda Scheduler

Optical networks provide a new dimension to meet the demands of exponentially growing traffic. Optical packet switching requires a good switch architecture, which eliminates the O/E/O conversion as much as possible. Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) provides a breakthrough to exploit the huge bandwidth of the optical fiber. Different applications have different requirements, which necessitate employing differentiated services. This paper presents the idea of a priority-based λ-scheduler, where the packets are differentiated into different classes and services are provided accordingly. For example, class 0 can correspond to non real time applications like email and ftp, while class 1 can correspond to real-time audio and video communications. The architecture is based on that of the λ-scheduler and hence it has the added advantage of reduced component cost by using WDM internally.

Book Review of Raising Less Corn, More Hell: The Case for the Independent Farm and Against Industrial Food by George Pyle

Raising Less Corn, More Hell may sound like a rallying cry for the nation's heartland farmers, but this well-written series of essays by George Pyle is meant for those who eat corn. Or rather, for those of us who eat the livestock fed on corn in confined animal feeding operations, then wash down those meals with drinks high in high-fructose corn syrups. Pyle, an editorial writer from Kansas now living in Utah, brings his journalist's skills to bear on what our industrial food system has brought us. It's not appetizing as he makes his case against a corporate-controlled system that doesn't have to be this way.