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World Wide Web was born. The World Wide Web is
in fact a browser for the
Internet
---
a kind of software program that allows users to access and
navigate
within information on the net. With the introduction of the World Wide Web, the
development of the Internet accelerated at a rapid pace. The first computer code of
the web was created in 1991 allowing programmers to combine words,
pictures, and
sounds on web pages.
In the early nineties, the first
search engine, Gopher, and the first web
browser, Mosaic, were developed, allowing easier and simpler access to the Net.
Traffic on the Internet
started growing at an annual rate of
approximately
340,000 percent.
At the end of the 1990s, Internet2 was born.
Internet2 uses fiber optic cables to link together a
consortium of hundreds of high-speed networks
around the world. Instead of connecting to the
Internet solely through telephone lines,
people
could now connect in a wide variety of ways, including
via satellite. These new methods have more
data carrying capacity,
or bandwidth,
than telephone lines. This made the Internet faster and able to convey much more
information. People could soon watch TV shows and movies online.
In the future, people will not need a computer to access the Internet. The
browser will become a platform for the Web. Information will no longer need to
be stored in a computer hard drive. Instead, it will be stored in places around
the world. People can retrieve
it through cell phones, music players, and other
portable devices. This is called “cloud computing,” because it seems as if
information floats down from the sky. A 2008 study
said that the Internet will
continue to grow. By 2020, a low-cost global network will allow people even in
remote areas to have Internet access. English will remain the primary Net language,
but other languages, especially Mandarin, will increase. Also,
a segment of society
will refuse to use the Net and live without modern technology.
Reading Time
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562 words
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navigate --- to direct or manage its course
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search engine --- a computer program that searches the World Wide Web
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annual --- yearly
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approximately --- nearly
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consortium --- a group formed with
the purpose to work together
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data --- information
