Data bits flow from cell towers through fiber and copper lines to a switching station.

数据从信号接收塔经由光纤和铜线流至交换站。

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The problem is that a huge portion of the cell towers in the country are still connected using slow copper lines, and running fiber backhaul to them is expensive.

问题在于整个国家中很大一部分的发射塔仍然使用慢速铜制网线连接，而如果使用光缆费用就太高了。

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At that time, how did you think of using the copper lines like conductor?

当初怎么想起用这种类似导体的铜线呢？

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And by tearing out the copper lines in a Fios neighborhood, Verizon's locked up the customer for good.

FORBES: Magazine Article

But even the landlines need less human attention because Verizon is rapidly replacing old-fashioned copper lines with lower-maintenance, fiber-optic cables.

NPR: Practically Human: Can Smart Machines Do Your Job?

Unfortunately, with traditional copper lines, once you cross six or seven miles, they drop off to half a meg, if you can even get that.

BBC: Rural county sees struggles with speed