AP Photo/Lai Seng Sin
In case it’s slipped under the radar, something very special celebrated a ‘birthday’ this week.
Congratulations on the Internet for celebrating its 40th Birthday!
That’s right, the ‘Interwebs’ is officially ‘over the hill’.
A post by Xeni Jardin on BoingBoing.net gives a brief summary on the Internet’s genesis:
“September 2, 1969: Forty years ago today, in Leonard Kleinrock's UCLA lab, a group of computer scientists managed to pass bits of data from one computer to another over some some gray cable. In doing so, they created the first node of what we now call (long dramatic pause)... the Internet. “
Just like the radio, telephone and television before it, the Internet as a medium has revolutionized
communication and moved data consumption worldwide into the next phase of the Information Age.
However, perspective is still needed when understanding the totality of the Internet’s global impact.
Here’s a seemingly simple question--can you imagine a world without the Internet?
The answer to this very much depends upon 3 W’s; who, when, and where?
The website, Internet World Stats, reports that with the Earth’s population just under
6.8 billion, around 24.7% are active Internet users.
Meanwhile, IWS also reports the U.S. population as a little over 300 million with approximately 74% of Americans as users.
So, for a variety of reasons, whether it be financial limitations, social access, or ultimate disinterest by a certain culture, the internet could still be considered a luxury of sorts---even in 2009.
Taking all of this into consideration, the question to ask now is, can you imagine you’re modern lifestyle without the Internet?
Think about it...
No Facebook, MySpace or Twitter?
No YouTube instant celebrities??
No CTA Bus Tracker?!!
Without a doubt, that's a loaded proposition, and one that deserves further exploration.
Check out www.internetworldstats.com/ for more population stats and
www.boingboing.net/2009/09/02/happy-40th-birthday.html for the entire post on the Internet's B-Day.
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