Fourteen students from Monsignor Edward Pace High School’s STEM Academy Emerging Computer Technologies Program got to see the pinnacle of technology in South Florida when they visited Verizon Terremark’s NAP of the Americas data center and Internet exchange point in downtown Miami on November 17.
The NAP (Network Access Point) functions essentially as the heart of the Internet for Latin America as it connects South America and the Caribbean to the rest of the world. The students, who study programming, computer science, computer graphics, and web design as part of their Academy classes, toured the massive complex and witnessed the intricate systems and technology at work.
They were joined on the trip not only by Ricardo Machado, Pace’s director of Technology, but also by Pace principal Ana Garcia.
Garcia, who was visiting the data center for the first time, says she “wanted to find out about the ultimate in technology and see what technology could have in store for the future.”
“For this group of kids,” said Machado, “they were able to see technology and what they are studying in action.”