How has the Internet changed our world forever?

How has the Internet changed the world we live in forever? I see its impact being permanant, and encompassing every aspect of human society. Its impacts include --

(1) freedom of speech; What's more free for speech than websites, chat rooms, and message boards? Also, even the most dictatorial regimes can't hide the rest of the world from the computer savvy and their friends, without banning the entire Internet, or computers altogether... And let's not forget the thousands of news & opinion websites out there! We no longer have to rely on what Dan Rather and Tom Brokaw tell us... we can verify it for ourselves!

(2) environmental impact; How many trees have been saved since virtually all information has been posted online? I go into my college library, and other than updated reference books, nothing else in the library postdates 1995. Why? Because it's all on the Internet now! The Internet does increase the need for computers and electricty, though. But I think the overall impact of the Internet on the environment is positive -- not only given the examples above, but because of the car trips saved by ordering stuff online, or talking to people online (instead of meeting them in person, or sending traditional mail).

(3) the economy; In the Internet's early days of the mid-1990's, companies quickly discovered that people really wanted certain products online -- and really didn't want other products online. The things that sell the best? DVDs, CDs, books, magazines, posters & art, casual clothes (such as T-shirts & baseball caps), collectibles... stuff like that. The things that didn't sell well at all? Food, beauty products, dress clothes... stuff people like to see and try themselves before purchasing. However, the companies that got it right, did really well. (How many people have been able to finish otherwise impossible-to-finish collections thanks to eBay?)

(4) government; You can now go to www.firstgov.gov... , the official website of the U.S. governement; visit the website of any federal agency; or do the same for the 50 States ( www.state.tx.us... for example; to visit any other State, just replace the 'tx' with the postal code of the State of your choice). We're now more closely connected to our government than ever before! Every decision every department makes can now be viewed as soon as it happens. And the complaints come in faster too, when it's an unpopular decision. This by no means is unique to the U.S.; in fact, every country and international organization on the planet has its own web portal now (even authoritarian regimes, ironically).

(5) This is the final impact that immediately came to my mind tonight -- community. "Virtual communities" -- such as this message board -- have the same purpose and outcome as traditional town halls and local pubs, but without leaving your house. Also, they're global!

I know I've missed some impacts the Internet has had, both positive and negative. What do you think?

How many trees have been saved since virtually all information has been posted online? I go into my college library, and other than updated reference books, nothing else in the library postdates 1995. Why? Because it's all on the Internet now!

Actually the amount of paper used has increased because everyone prints everything off instead of borrowing a book one at a time. This is mainly because of the lack of people's ability to take digitial copies around with them (lots of ppl don't use laptops and PDAs) and the poor readability of computer screens.

[edit on 28-7-2004 by mrsteve]

I think the internet is the best thing ever invented! It's like the biggest library in the world just a click away, not to mention its countless useless like from advertising your company to e-mailing your freinds.
Oh and of course downloading free music.

One effect it has had is the levels of disinformation and misinformation have skyrocketed.

Before the net most information came from TV and Books both of which take large investments of money and time and therefore information was put together by specialist more than often.

With the internet publishing became cheap and easy. Anyone can buy a domain and start posting information for very little cash and with about 30 minutes of HTML tutorials. So as people started spreading bad information and unproductive ways of thinking it spread quickly.

Even worse, it was more accessable to younger people, unlike libraries which would at least take a bus/train/car trip to get to. So now people began growing up on hollywood scandals, UFO pictures, and porn.

TV, Radio, and Print did this before the internet but on a smaller and slower scale. Additionaly there was no feed back and reenforcment from these medias.

Why is this a problem? Well when you are deluged with information before learning basics such as critical thinking and logic you can develope a very warped view of the world.

I have actually seen people say "thats just science's opinion". That terrifies me that some looked at a science/religion or science/UFO thread and thought science was stating some kind of opinion. If this same person had gone through standard education through the highschool level not only would they learn scientific theory in grades 5-8 but even have done some experiments in highschool and seen what science is. Facts and evidence that support theories...if opinions had anything to do with it, then scientist would never redo theories or find they were incorrect.

The same can be said of any field. A good knowledge of history shows that humans have a long history of amazing stonework, be it the egytpians, sumerians, babylonians, persians, chinese, or many other cultures. SO when someone says "this ancient work is by aliens!" they are either claiming virtually everything we have done is by aliens or are ignorant of most our history.

The difference between this effect on the internet and other forms of media is that on the internet people can ignore known facts and evidence and just shoot strait to a sight on how the grey built undergound bases in ancient egypt... where as TV or Radio and school would force you to go through the facts, learn the evidence, and occasionally talk about these alternative theories and ideas.

And this doesn't just go for youth...many adults are effected in the same way. Especially those that never bothered to use TV or libraries as learning tools.

ATS says to deny ignorance... well how many people have a world of information at their fingertips now and remain ignorant of Ancient Philosphers, the sciences, math, engineering, and so much more "mundane" knowledge.

(Sorry, that was half reply half rant )

Originally posted by mrsteve
Actually the amount of paper used has increased because everyone prints everything off instead of borrowing a book one at a time. This is mainly because of the lack of people's ability to take digitial copies around with them (lots of ppl don't use laptops and PDAs) and the poor readability of computer screens.

Isn't most of that paper recycled nowadays, since all printer paper is virtually the same? Also, laptops and PDA's are becoming cheaper and better every year... I look forward to the day when they're virtually like the PADDS on Star Trek!

Originally posted by Quest
One effect it has had is the levels of disinformation and misinformation have skyrocketed... Why is this a problem? Well when you are deluged with information before learning basics such as critical thinking and logic you can develop a very warped view of the world... I have actually seen people say "thats just science's opinion"...

This is very true, but I don't think it's the Internet's fault, it's peoples' fault for not being educated in the basic subjects -- Math, Science, Social Studies, and English -- which would, of course, involve developing critical thinking skills. Web pages with dis- and mis-information are virtually ignored by those who know how to think critically!

The ability to get information is now esay with the internet, i wrote a term paper for school on immigration, and 90 of my informaiton came from the internet, who know what i would of done with out it.

if there was no internet, ATS would not exist.

No one has said anyting about internet porn already and Im pretty sure it and money making scams account for the majority of it.

I like how yuo can connect with anyone all over the world instantanouesly all for the price of your connection. It helps make the world a smaller place. Also the resources for information are seemingly infinate with a definate infinate amount of false information.

There are a lot of bad things that the internet has brought, such as the pornography, exchange of bad ideas, and how it can be used for criminal/terrorist activity. Also people can be easily hooked on this thing especially with all the interactive gaming and chatting that is here.

Above all the internet has given us ATS and that has chagned my world.

Originally posted by jrod
There are a lot of bad things that the internet has brought, such as the pornography,

Acually, I think porn brought the internet. I was listening to NPR a few months ago, and the program was about how lot's of technological advaces have been because of the porn industry. They talked about how photography, the internet, and picture phones have been advanced since the invention of the camera by the use of the porn market.

What you say makes sense. Free porn is not a bad thing and those who can make money doing it more power to them, if someone finds that stuff offensive there are plenty of filters availible. Child porn and the solication of minors via chat rooms is the dirty side of the porn fall out.

Originally posted by Slayer
Acually, I think porn brought the internet. I was listening to NPR a few months ago, and the program was about how lot's of technological advaces have been because of the porn industry. They talked about how photography, the internet, and picture phones have been advanced since the invention of the camera by the use of the porn market.

Heh, that reminds me of a graduate student's paper I read in college (she was working on her doctoral in History); the paper was about how all the advancements in technology and society in human history, from the invention of the wheel to the Internet, can be traced directly to two sources:
(1) War
(2) Sex

'Tis human nature, I suppose.

reply to post by katt06


whats ATS?

reply to post by ThunderCloud


Information age, yet the internet needs to evolve far beyond this caveman internet... it's already starting to happen, information, one world language English, looks like it will be American English, 75%+ of the internet communicates in English, Dr. Michio Kaku says the evolution of a planet involves a 1 world language and he says English is already the chosen language based on the internet. So too bad other languages you already lost the race when the USA invented the internet.

The evolution will obviously evolve in an expected way, such as free information, right now a lot of the info on the web is free, but a great deal is for sale, it will evolve into 100% free information eventually, might take a while but all books will probably be uploaded and translated into English,
due to this influx of reading material all societies with access will become enlightened, of course there's always a chance porn will disrupt this cycle towards the world of Idiocracy, so some might devolve thinking nothing of robot cyber sex, hopefully most will evolve.

A free worldwide ebay type site would eventually come into existance, something more like craigslist, greed must exit the web, or a one world order might force greed to be removed for free trade to exist, I don't know how this would work but it's the natural predictable evolutionary cycle, many humans would have everything they need and know everything they need to know and we would go to other planets and create a moon web, a mars web, a solar wide web, etc etc...