What is The Internet?

Which detail from the passage best explains the meaning of the phrase "network of networks"?

• "A Local Area Network, or LAN, is a private network."

• "...that global network connects smaller networks, letting all the computers on those networks communicate."

• "The networks that make up the internet are different sizes."

• "Well, in computer terms, a "network" is two or more computers that can communicate.

The internet lets people communicate by sending emails, instant messaging, video chatting and more. It also lets people learn and find information on something called the World Wide Web. The web is a system of resources that are linked together. It includes images, documents, videos and other kinds of files. Hyperlinks allow a person to move between these files. Though some people confuse them, the web isn't the same as the internet itself. In addition to the web, the internet supports many other applications.

Based on the passage, the internet is

• Not needed to access the web.

• Smaller than the web.

• The structure that supports the web.

• A program that requires the web.

Despite its wide use, there are a lot of misconceptions about the internet. Many people don't understand how it works. While there are underground wires that form important internet connections, the internet itself is not a physical place. It's not a chip inside of a computer either. It's a system that facilitates information sharing and connectivity across the globe. The internet consists of networks that are interconnected. The networks also use standardized protocols. A protocol is a system of rules. The protocols used by computers on the internet let them communicate.

What is the main purpose of the passage above?

• To define the term "protocol"

• To correct common misconceptions about the internet

• To explain the importance of protocols

• To prove that the internet is too complicated to fully understand

To connect to the internet, a person needs an internet service provider, or ISP. An ISP is a company that provides access to the internet for a fee. It's sort of like a telephone or electric company. When a person wants to see a particular website, they type the URL into a browser. They hit enter to make the request, which tells their ISP what they are looking for. The request then moves through the network until it arrives at the server where that website is hosted. Then a response is sent back to them.

Which of the following would be the best title of this passage?

• URLs

• Websites

• How to Use a Computer

• What is an ISP?

The internet is a relatively new system. In the 1950s, when there was no internet, tensions were high between the US and the Soviet Union. Many experts in the US worried that an attack on the telephone system might destroy communication in the country. There was a pressing need for a communication system that could better survive an attack. In this tense time, scientists came up with the ideas for the internet. Messages would be broken up into smaller pieces and sent along different paths. They'd be reassembled upon arrival. If something happened to one path, there would be others available. This early internet was called ARPAnet. The first message was sent from UCLA to Stanford on ARPAnet in 1969.

Based on the passage, how was ARPAnet different from telephone communication systems?

• Communication was quicker on ARPAnet.

• Messages could travel farther on ARPAnet.

• Messages could take multiple paths on ARPAnet.

• Messages were received in secret codes on ARPAnet.

How do you access a website like Flocabulary? Partly with the help of the DNS. The DNS, or domain name system, links a website's name to an IP address. It's the reason you don't have to memorize random numbers to get on Flocabulary's website. All you need is the domain: flocabulary.com. The DNS is like a large phone book. Rather than linking people with their phone numbers, it links websites and IP addresses.

According to the passage, what does the DNS do?

• It links websites and their IPs.

• It hosts many websites.

• It changes a computer's IP.

• It shortens a computer's IP.

The size of the internet is growing. There are billions of devices connected to the internet right now, and more are connecting all the time. Not only do computers access it, but phones, watches and a range of other "smart" devices can now connect, too. Some people think that in the future, all of these devices will communicate with one another, creating an "internet of things." Imagine if a person's car could access her calendar, for example. There's also the possibility of using the internet of things to build city transportation that reduces waste. The internet of things holds tremendous potential. Of course, it also raises a lot of security questions that will need to be figured out along the way.

In this passage, "smart" most likely means

• sharp and painful.

• wise.

• well-dressed.

• connected to the internet.