The physics folks at UT-Dallas have won nearly $1 million to study the idea of making every radio part of a giant "mesh network." (That's the UT-Dallas seal over there, with its motto of discipline, civilization, and absolute rule by a self-appointed elite.)

The idea is that mobile phones and laptops could act as relay points for other users' transmissions, creating what the physicists call "cooperative wireless networks" but which might best be termed a "giant mesh."

We've seen just the start of the mesh evolution. Antennas meant to allow 802.11 signals to bounce along from subscriber to central server have been around for several years now, although they have yet to gain market traction.

I personally think that a mesh network based on cognitive radios would be perfect for individual Always-On networks in the home, allowing the size and shape of the network to be tailored to fit the space. (A round peg can be made to fit a square hole.)

The ultimate result, of course, is to make all wired networks obsolete, except for major fiber backhauls.