'Fiber' could help University of Michigan research and patient care, says medical school dean

James Woolliscroft is the dean of the U-M Medical School.

Getting the Internet speeds promised by the Google Fiber project could decrease limitations in medical school research and online collaborations that are now slowed by commercially available bandwidth, the University of Michigan medical school dean said.

That was part of his plug for the city of Ann Arbor to be chosen as a testing ground for the Fiber project, which promises Internet speeds of up to 100 times faster than what's commercially available.

Among other pushes from the community was a "flash mob" on U-M's Diag to show community support for bringing Google Fiber. Community support is one of the indicated criteria Google isÂ using to select test locations.Â

At a meeting in mid-March, the City Council adopted a resolution urging selection of Ann Arbor as a Google Fiber trial community.

In a video posted on YouTube, U-M Medical School Dean James Woolliscroft said the university's three missions focus around education, research and patient care.Â

"Google Fiber would have the potential for tremendous impact in all three of these areas," he said.