Assignment #2 DRAFT

“A high-speed internet connection is a modern lifeline to quality jobs, information, and vital services ranging from interactive telemedicine to high education”. (Broadband in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, 2011) This is one of the truest statements written about today’s day and age, and our strong reliance on being connected to the world via the internet. As I noted in my blog post a few weeks back, we can obtain access to the internet in almost every public place we go; Wal-Mart, McDonald’s, the local tire shop, Starbuck’s, etc. but there are still people in certain areas that cannot get internet in their own homes. One noted location is the Upper Peninsula, a gorgeous 16,452 square mile section of Michigan, that of which is approximately 1/3 of the state. (University, 2011) Much of this part does have the privilege of internet connection, but 20,229 are still without the luxury. (Broadband in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, 2011)

            An astounding amount of our everyday life revolves around access to the World Wide Web. We sign into our e-mail in the morning to check for any last minute work meetings planned for the day, submit assignments on class websites, pay tuition, and keep in touch with long distance friends and family. It’s hard to believe we are still facing the unbelievable challenge of enabling internet to anybody who wishes to purchase the service. Expanding access to broadband technology is the main focus of a recent program executed in the U.P. referred to as “Connect Michigan”. This program has instilled federal dollars to install the main infrastructure to outspread broadband connection to rural areas. Their next step is to push internet providers to bring their services to these new structures in more rural areas. This advancement would help a large amount of people in many, many counties throughout the Keweenaw. The majority of the counties in the area are in the high seventies to medium eighties in the availability of broadband service category. (Cole, 2012)  Houghton County has the highest household density at 13.63 and the percentage of households with broadband availability in this zone is only at 78.39%. With the amount of businesses, both small and large, homes, and schools including two colleges, this percentage needs to increase as soon as humanly possible. Connect Michigan is the ring leader behind all of the broadband mapping and laying out in the entire state, but in these past few years they have poured all of their focus into developing the U.P.

       The Upper Peninsula is filled with small towns and each small town has their fair share of small, local businesses. The largest town is in fact Marquette, with a population of 21,335 (Marquette) compared to the largest town in lower Michigan, Detroit, at a population of 713,777.