Term Paper on "Invention and Development of the Internet"

Term Paper 11 pages (3019 words) Sources: 14 Style: MLA

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Internet in Response to the Cold War

The history of the computer industry, in general, has been a story of fast-paced development. Technological advancements coming in rapid fire succession has been the key development of technologies a generation or two ago were only the stuff of science fiction, such as the Internet. Today, technology and specifically the Internet are intrinsically intertwined in every aspect of society, from home life to the workplace, the Internet has changed the way people work, interconnect, and live.

Following is an exploration of the Internet in response to the Cold War, when and how it was invented and how politicians were involved in its founding.

The evolution of today's necessary hardware and software needed to connect to the Internet, from the simple PC of yesteryear, will be discussed. And, lastly, how the Internet impacts society, both the good and the bad, will be investigated.

The Cold War:

The Cold War was nearly a half-century long struggle between the capitalistic nation of the United States and the communist nation of the Soviet Union. The Cold War began with the deterioration of relations between the U.S. And the U.S.S.R., in mid- to late-1945, at the end of World War II. The U.S.S.R., at this time was firmly entrenched in Eastern Europe and not only wanted to install governments in this region, but also wanted to expand its security zone further into Central Asia, North Korea, and the Middle East.

With the United States' expansion of their own security zone, these actions fueled suspicions between both parties and fueled the conflict ("Cold War").

At first, the Cold War was primarily political in nature, as both sides sought political allegiance with other nations, but events such as: the communist takeover of China, the Truman Doctrine, the Warsaw Pact, and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, militarized the conflict. By 1960, both countries had bought into the theory that 'mutually assured destruction' through the stockpiling of nuclear weaponry, was the best means of deterring conflict.

In addition, the early 1960s saw the refocus on conventional warfare as well, to ensure a more 'flexible response' to communism, as it continued to spread ("Cold War"). Both the United States and the Soviet Union looked to technology to try to tilt the balance of power in their favor. Technological advancements were perceived to hold that key and America seemed to be one step behind the Russians.

Both the Soviet leader, Nikita Khrushchev, and a succession of American presidents, from Dwight Eisenhower through Richard Nixon, believed conquering space was very important. Conquering space would demonstrate the country's scientific superiority as well as their military strength. In 1957, the Soviet Union took the lead in the Space Race, with the launch of Sputnik, the first artificial Earth satellite ("The Space Race").

This further fueled the technological battle between the two nations.

Both offensive and defensive technologies were being developed, to prove to the world which country was technological, scientifically, and militarily superior. To facilitate this development, in the United States, several initiatives were taken, in hopes of retaking the global scientific lead. It would be from this desire to surpass the Soviet Union that would give birth to what would eventually become the Internet.

The Birth of the Internet:

As mentioned, the Cold War instigated several different initiatives to promote American superiority in the sciences. Project RAND was developed by the United States Army Air Forces, in 1946, under the contract of the Douglas Aircraft Company. Two years later, they became an independent non-profit think tank staffed with researchers and analysts who are on the leading edge of their fields ("History").

The (Defense) Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA/DARPA) was formed, in 1958, for research in general, and not specifically geared towards only military applications, as noted, as a means of countering the emergence of the Soviet Union as a scientific and technological leader, with their successful launch of Sputnik.

Since that time DARPA's mission has been to assure that the U.S. maintains a lead in applying state-of-the-art technology for military capabilities and to prevent technological surprise from her adversaries.

The DARPA organization was as unique as its role, reporting directly to the Secretary of Defense and operating in coordination with, but completely independent of, the military research and development (R&D) establishment. Strong support from the senior DoD management has always been essential since DARPA was designed to be an anathema to the conventional military and R&D structure and, in fact, to be a deliberate counterpoint to traditional thinking and approaches ("DARPA").

DARPA's assignment early on was to discover how best to use America's investment in computers via Command and Control Research (CCR). Coming from Bolt, Beranek and Newman (BBN), in 1962, Dr. J.C.R. Licklider was chosen to head up this effort (Hauben).

One of the primary projects of the computer research department of DARPA, under the direction of the Department of Defense, was the development of ARPANET. Licklider foresaw the impact technology would have on computing as early as 1968.

In his article with Taylor, he stated, "In a few years, men will be able to communicate more effectively through a machine than face-to-face." It was this prophetic vision that led to the beginning of ARPANET.

ARPANET was a decentralized computer network, that gave military agencies around the country the ability to communicate with one another, if traditional communication infrastructure was attacked, destroyed or compromised in any way.

This decentralized version eliminated the dependence on a single point, that way, if one hub was destroyed the others didn't lose their communication ability.

With the escalation of the Cold War in the form of the Cuban Missile Crisis, this insurance that communication could continue despite attacks, became even more important to the United States. The idea of networking was first thought of by the Information Processing Techniques Office (IPTO) of DARPA.

Licklider saw the potential in the sharing of resources networking could provide, understanding that networking wasn't simply about connecting computers, but connecting humans that used computers (Hauber).

Eventually, as tensions eased, ARPANET found its way into other areas, particularly research institutions and the world of academia.

A subnetwork of Interface Message Processors (IMPs) were developed, with communication protocols developed at each site, to account for the varying types of computers being utilized.

Because of this need for hardware and software development, the academic and research and development communities became actively involved in development.

It was hoped that these communities could help exploit this new communication medium.

By 1974, ARPANET had grown from the original 4 members to 46 members. By 1981, that number had risen to 213, at which point, one new host was joining at a rate of approximately every twenty days.

In 1983, the U.S. Military formed a separate network, MILNET.

Soon after, ARPANET, long since international, became known simply as "the Internet" (Smith). In contrast, the NIPRNet (Nonsecure Internet Protocol Router Network) is used to exchange unclassified information, that is still deemed sensitive, and is the daily workhouse of the military (Perera).

The Secret IP Router Network (SIPRNet) is DoD's largest interoperable command and control data network, supporting the Global Command and Control System (GCCS), the Defense Message System (DMS), collaborative planning and numerous other classified warfighter applications ("DISN Data").

Politicians Involvement in the Creation of the Internet:

Presidents, from Dwight Eisenhower through Richard Nixon, all had significant impact on the development of what would become the Internet. But, despite claims to the contrary, Al Gore did not invent the Internet.

In 1999, then presidential hopeful Al Gore was being interviewed by CNN's Wolf Blitzer. When questioned what Gore brought to the race that other Democratic hopefuls didn't, Gore began with explaining that his campaign would be comprehensive, and that he had traveled to all parts of the United States over the last six years.

Then, he added, "During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the Internet" (qtd. "No Credit").

However, when ARPANET was first designed, Gore was only 21-years old, still in law school at Vanderbilt University. By the time Gore was a freshman Democrat in the House of Representatives, ARPANET was growing by leaps and bounds. "By that time, file copying -- via the UUCP protocol -- was beginning. Email was flourishing. The culture of the Internet was starting to develop through the Jargon File and the SF-Lovers mailing list" ("No Credit"). All without the input and influence of a wet-behind-the-ears Gore.

Even more senior members of Congress were a bit out of the loop when it came to the beginnings of the Internet.

In 1968, when Senator Ted Kennedy learned that Massachusetts-based BBN had won the ARPA contract for an IMP, he sent out a congratulatory telegram. In it, he thanked the workers at BBN "for their ecumenical spirit in devising an 'interfaith message processor'" ("No Credit"). For most politicians, the concept of networking and timesharing of computers was completely foreign.

In 1998, the Computing Research Association noted that the United… READ MORE

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