Communications are important. Living in today’s world, most
people expect to have instant or near-instant access to
communication networks, whether by cellphone, computer,
smartphone, or other device. These networks depend on extensive
infrastructure, maintained by the various organizations and
companies that have an interest in ensuring that the
communications flow freely. These are weak points; in cases of
extensive disasters–fires, floods, earthquakes, hurricanes and
the like–or in the case of man-made interruptions–terrorism or
blackouts–the infrastructure becomes compromised. With this
interruption in communications, there are difficulties not only
to the people who live in the affected area but to the emergency
workers trying to help them. To make matters worse, if
communications are only partially interrupted, the remaining
nodes will quickly become overloaded due to the high demand that
far outstrips the supply. Communications between rescue workers
might suffer intermittent outages; text messages may