Introduction -- Alaska's first information highway -- Expansion after World War II and "the talking lady of the North"--Early broadcasting -- Privatizing the Alaska communications system -- The beginning of the satellite era -- The NASA experiments -- From satellite experiments to commercial service -- Telephone service for every village -- Broadcasting and teleconferencing for rural Alaska -- Rural television : from RATNET to ARCS -- Deregulation and disruption -- State planning and policy -- Alaska's local telephone companies -- The phone wars -- Distance learning : from satellites to the internet -- Telemedicine in Alaska -- A new century : the growth of mobile and broadband -- Past and future connections
Alex Hills traveled Alaska by bush plane and snow machine, braving extreme weather and rough terrain to bring telephone service to small villages across the big state. Then he developed a new public radio station to serve the people of Alaska’s huge northwest region. In Finding Alaska’s Villages Alex tells the story of how he helped the state’s telecom pioneers bring about an innovation that would forever change rural Alaska. It took some innovative technical work — and some convincing of government officials and corporate executives — to make it happen. The innovation was the introduction of the small satellite earth stations that would eventually make needed telecommunication services — two-way medical communication, a phone in every house and business, and radio and live television programs — available in Alaska’s villages.
"Alaskans experience isolation of two kinds: Physical landscapes that keep us apart and intangible separations of culture and race. Because of these distances, both literal and metaphoric, conversations about issues that affect our entire state happen too infrequently and exclude many people. This thesis project provides a space for that dialogue in museums and other public spaces."--Back cover
Connectivity in transportation networks, or lack thereof, is a challenge that many people have to deal with. Alaska has many rural communities that are inaccessible by conventional modes of transportation. In order for people to reach these communities and move between them unconventional modes of transportation are needed. However, very few studies have been done on unconventional transportation modes such as ATVs and snowmachines and the level to which they contribute to connecting people and how to help limit traumatic injuries of users. This study focuses on Alaska and three primary datasets. First, the Pacific North West Transportation Survey developed by the University of Alaska Fairbanks and the University of Idaho. Second, Alaska Trauma Registry data obtained from Division of Public Health and Safety. Thirdly, publicly available GIS transportation network and populated place data. These three data sets accomplish the following objectives: (1) document preferences and perceptions of mixed-use safety, (2) to better understand the reasons for injuries and fatalities involving ATVs and snowmachines, and (3) to identify potential mixed-use conflict areas by geographic mapping of traumas. From this analysis a better understanding of ATV mode use was discovered. ATVs are used for a variety of trip purposes including: commuting, running errands, chores, and recreation. ATVs are used on and near roadways 24% of the time. There are twice as many ATV-related traumas in connected places than in isolated places, and 3 times more ATV related traumas in highway connected places than secondary road connected places. Snowmachines are used on and near roadways 23% of the time and have 3 times as many traumas in highway connected places than secondary road connected places. Highway connected places have a significantly higher risk of having ATV and snowmachine traumas than road connected places. This indicates that part of the issue could be the amount of traffic in connected areas, or perhaps the frequency of use of ATVs rather than automobiles in non-connected areas leading to fewer mixed-use scenarios.
