20 A2+ Life online

CHAPTER 1 The Birth of the Internet PEOPLE ALL OVER THE WORLD ARE CONNECTED BY THE INTERNET. HOW DID IT ALL START? The Information Superhighway, The World Wide Web, The Web, The Net... The Internet has been called many things since it was created. But it doesn't matter what it's called, the Internet is a wonderful invention that connects people all around the world. It is the key to the digital age. Like the telegraph and the telephone, the Internet heads a long line of inventions that have changed the way people communicate with each other.

The Internet lets people communicate in many ways— through email, video, and social networking sites, for example. People use the Internet on computers, tablets, and smartphones. But how did the Internet start? It was partly thanks to a man named J. C. R. Licklider. In 1962, this American scientist had the idea that computers around the world could be connected to each other and share information. After several years of research, people working for the US government had a plan for a network called ARPANET. By 1969, four computers were connected to ARPANET.

More and more computers were connected to ARPANET, and in 1972, it was shown to the public. The first emails were sent around the same time. At first, only researchers and the government used computers connected to networks. But the use of the Internet to bring computers into networks was a great idea. And like most good ideas, it quickly spread. By the 1980s, many people had personal computers in their homes, and the World Wide Web, the Internet as we know it today, began in 1990. Now, it is hard to imagine a world that is not connected by the Internet.

When the Internet first became available to the public, it was mostly for companies that sold things online. Later, people began using the web to find and share information. With the invention of sites like YouTube and Facebook, people began using the Internet to communicate with each other in new ways. Now, the Internet is mobile with people using it on smartphones, tablets, and other devices.

CHAPTER 2 Liking, Tweeting, Trending THE INTERNET CONNECTS PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD. IT ALSO LETS PEOPLE DECIDE WHAT THEY WANT TO READ, SEE, AND SHARE. Many people use the Internet to reconnect with family and old friends. For example, when Frances Simpson was 18, she started looking for her father. She hadn't seen him since she was three years old. But it wasn't easy. She couldn't find him for a long time. Then, after looking for 33 years, she finally found him through Facebook. After connecting on the Internet, they talked on the phone, and then they met face-to-face. They hadn't seen each other in almost 50 years. Social networking is the most popular reason people use the Internet. And Facebook and Twitter are two of the most popular social networking sites.

Twitter is a site where people post, or put, short personal messages online. These "tweets" can be no more than 140 characters long. It's very popular. In 2012, there were over one billion tweets per day! Facebook is even more popular. In 2013, there were over 664 million Facebook users. If Facebook were a country, it would have the third largest population in the world after China and India! Instagram, a photo-sharing site, is also really popular. In January 2013, over 100 million photographs were posted on the site.