The Wild Web

“It’s like the Wild West, the internet, there are no rules.” - Steven Wright

Ah, the internet. Our culture today revolves around it. We live in a time where we are reliant on it in our everyday lives. We cannot even begin to grasp the amount of information that is available to us. Our culture is so dependent on the internet, it can be difficult to imagine life without it. With much reliance on our current technology, it can leave one wondering, “Where would we be without it?”

Take a second and think about it in the world without the internet. Can you even imagine it? Businesses use it and even depend on it daily. Colleges also rely on it for teaching and completing school and exams. But it has not always been this way. Throughout the years the internet and technology have progressed to this point. For example, assignments used to have to always be written or typed on paper and turned in on a physical piece of paper. Nowadays, college is set up in a way that a student can simply turn their assignment to their teacher online.

Think about even the simple activities that we partake in every day. What if you’re driving to a place you’ve never been before. No problem right? Simply google the address and a voice tells you where exactly to turn until you arrive at your destination. Let’s say on that drive, you listen to the radio and don't quite understand the lyrics. You can pull out your smartphone and look it up! These are just a few examples of how much we, as a culture, use the internet daily. When it comes to the internet, the world is at our fingertips.

The internet was officially introduced on January 1st, 1983. Interestingly enough, the internet was not invented by a single person but thousands of individuals. That information seems rather strange until you consider the fact of just how complex the internet truly is. Miriam Webster defines the internet as: “an electronic communications network that connects computer networks and organizational computer facilities around the world.” This is no simple machine. Our culture uses it every day, without stopping to consider the incredible service we are using.

So how does the internet work exactly? Every day, the internet is becoming more complicated, as engineers are creating new websites, etc. HostingNBC breaks this process down quite simply. The internet exchanges information from one server to another through a process called “packet switching.” The “packets” of information flow and pick the most efficient route to reach each server which holds the information. This is all made possible through the help of the routers, which make connections between the systems.

Internet usage is vast. Pew Research conducted a survey in 2019 which tells us the percentage of U.S adults who are using the internet most. The results were astounding as 99% of individuals ages 18-29 use the internet. Interestingly enough, the majority of the older generation (65+) use the internet as well, with 73% of them regularly accessing the internet. These statistics display just how much the internet has shaped society and culture. As for the first age group mentioned, the statistics shown mean that only one out of one-hundred people do not access the internet. Society is not only partaking in the use of the internet but rather we are engulfed in it.

We can all agree that the internet has affected and shaped culture. However, the question we ought to ask ourselves is whether or not the internet has affected us for the better or the worse? This topic has long been debated and many scholars would disagree with one another. A possible answer to that question could be both. We can all agree that there are dark sides to the internet. However, it is extremely useful to us in numerous situations, it answers our questions, and social media allows for connections among friends. Also, numerous businesses have prospered and thrived on the web.

In conclusion, the internet is extremely complex and has certainly come a long way. Countless people use it daily, more than we may realize. The world of the internet provides users with countless knowledge. If used properly, the internet has more positives than negatives. At the end of the day, we can choose to use it how we see fit and use it to accomplish our goals. The options are limitless, so we ought to take advantage of it.