Like the copper cable, it would be buried in the ground--but a strand the diameter of a human hair could carry thousands of times more information than the copper wire.
Researchers conclude that a potential future global population of 10 billion people could consume 1.7 trillion kilograms of copper total, greater than the estimated global in-ground stocks of 1.6 trillion kilograms.
We climb the winding stairs, past a sleek black entryway sculpture of dancing partners jutting up nearly three stories from a ground-floor fountain, and enter a parlor clad completely in copper, the metallurgical complement to the ballroom.