Computer-designed algorithms for controlling network
congestion yield transmission rates two to three times as high as those
designed by humans.
TCP, the transmission control protocol, is one of the core
protocols governing the Internet: If counted as a computer program, it’s the
most widely used program in the world.
One of TCP’s main functions is to prevent network congestion
by regulating the rate at which computers send data. In the last 25 years,
engineers have made steady improvements to TCP’s congestion-control algorithms,
resulting in several competing versions of the protocol: Many Windows
computers, for instance, run a version called Compound TCP, while Linux
machines run a version called TCP Cubic.