It’s said when you open a book your mind can wander anywhere. Read a biography on oceanographer Robert Ballard and instantly you’re transported to his surprise discovery of the Titanic in 1985. But what if Ballard could have actually taken you with him?

In some classrooms, students don’t have to imagine this type of adventure. Internet2, an Ann Arbor, Mich., networking consortium, allows schools high-speed access to universities, libraries and museums throughout the world, and yes, to Ballard’s next dive. With an Internet2 connection — the backbone is 10,000 times the speed of home cable or Digital Subscriber Line — students can watch live as explorers, scientists and practically anyone of educational note, go about their jobs. In addition, students can ask them questions as they work. Stretching beyond this, students from all over the world interact with each other through Internet2, allowing children to appreciate all cultures in a way print media can’t match.