The Internet: How it Affects my Life The internet is an amazing innovation. It was not invented by Al Gore as he so stubbornly states but in fact was created by the United States Air Force in the 1950s and 1960s as they debated which the fastest way to exchange information was. This was important as computers became a much larger part of society and technology. Over time and after many technological developments, the internet has become what it is today: “The worldwide, publicly accessible network of interconnected computer networks that transmit data by packet switching using the standard Internet Protocol (IP)”. [Wikipedia.com] The internet affects me in a very profound way. First of all, all of my research is done on the internet. For example, if I am searching for an apartment in the area, it is not feasible to drive around looking for apartments and stopping by each one to narrow it down to see which complex fits my needs. Rather I can log onto the web, search Google for apartments in the 91789 Walnut zip code, and voila, I am inundated with a number of apartments sorted by price range, rating, location, and many other desirable factors. In addition to research, the internet serves as a financial means to me. I currently have developed my own eBay business, in which I am able to sell products to people all over the world, and with a service known as paypal; these payments can be directly deposited into my checking account as if I had an employer. Thus, the internet is truly an amazing network, not only in terms of information, but in terms of business as well. The future of the internet is unknown but I can only imagine that it will continue to affect my life in a positive way. As my new career of air traffic control develops, the internet will play a larger role in the interaction between pilots and controllers, and I can only assume one day that humans will be taken out of the workplace loop and be there to only monitor computers talking to other computers via extremely complex networks as fields like human factors, aviation and technology synergize.