Mapping the Internet with DIMES

The terms "internet" and "world wide web" capture the common vision of the internet as a global network, but if you had to map it, how would you do it and what would it look like? A program called the DIMES (Distributed Internet Measurements & Simulations) Project has set out to map the internet, with the help of volunteers who are being asked to contribute their internet location. The DIMES project, which has been operational since September 1, 2004, uses Internet measurements such as TRACEROUTE and PING, to identify agent locations and linkages. Volunteers receive maps of the internet relative to their location and a personal "Internet weather report" on internet activity around their node. The DIMES project is being run by researchers at Tel-Aviv University and is part of the EVERGROW consortium of researchers for complex systems research.