An individual optic fiber consists of a core (the strand of glass itself), a cladding (an optical material that surrounds the glass strand), and a buffer coating (protection against wear and the elements). Hundreds and even thousands of individual strands are held together by a strong outer covering, called a jacket.
Optical fibers use light in order to convey information. Light is carried all along the cables, and has the ability to travel up and down or bend around corners because the cladding allows the light traveling through the optic fiber to be constantly reflecting back on itself. The cladding, so to speak, does not steal any light from the optical fiber; it hands it back to it each time. For this reason, the light can travel a long, long way without weakening.
The way that fiber optics works is that you have a transmitter on one end coming up with and encoding the light signals, followed by the optical fibers taking the light on its journey. En route, something called on optic regenerator may have to be called upon to strengthen the light if it is flagging. Finally, on the other end, you have an optical receiver, which receives the light or information and decodes (or translates) it. Your emails, pictures, games, and other data flow up and down these long, long cables.
Fiber optics make the world a more convenient, safe, fun place in many ways.
 Fiber optics are more economical. It is less expensive to produce fiber optics cables than the cables telephone and TV companies have traditionally relied on. Less cost for them means less cost for you.
 Fiber optics are finer than regular cables, which means that more can be fitted into one tube.
 The corridors of fiber optic cables are free of electricity, which means no fire hazards.
 It is not as easy for the signals being carried by fiber optic cables to weaken.
 Fiber optics are extremely light. The lighter an appliance, the more convenient it is.
 Signals traveling through regular cables can clash and jar with one another, creating fuzzy television images and fuzzy phone conversations. Signals traveling through optic fiber cables simply pass each other by without clashing. That means a nice, clear television image and a clear voice at the other end of the telephone line.
 The fact that fiber optics deals with digital information means that it is ideally suited to work with computers. The importance of computers to the world cannot be overstated; we rely on them to power our homes, keep us in contact with our friends, pay our bills, entertain us, etc. Fiber optics makes our lives increasingly easy in all of these areas.
 Fiber optic cables carry more information than other cables, allowing you to have more television and computer options (for example