Research Article

 I decided to do some research on the Internet since I am enrolled in Computing classes at Clark College. Previously, I came across the Internet protocol written for the original networking now in place. I had enjoyed that protocol immensely. I decided to refine my search toward the use of email. I feel that email was instrumental in bringing the world together.
  The keywords I began with are Internet, protocols, and email  using the search engine in the Gale Reference Library at Clark.
 I settled on  an article from the Encyclopedia of Social Networks. I had suspected that the early protocols and uses for email on the Internet would shed light on the direction the network took. It came to light that there were mailing lists that came about due to a man named Steve Walker.
 Mr. Walker was a manager for ARPANET, our infant Internet that was used for military and scholarly purposes. "In his June 7, 1975, e-mail, Walker advocated a social use of mailing lists for informal dialogue. In parallel with official experimentation and debate, a number of leisure-related mailing lists, such as SF-Lovers, Human-Nets, and Wine-Tasters, were created for the discussion of topics popular with the scientific and military population of ARPANET".
He felt the people using these mailing lists might benefit by using the Internet to further their interests. This was the first form of Internet social networking. Social networking is not a new concept. Since the beginning of time humans have been socializing. Our current craze of sending out updates on the minutia of mundane living is extreme. I think the founders of the Internet had an idea of what they were doing but no idea how deeply electronic social interactions would effect every aspect of our lives.

Source Citation   (MLA 7^th Edition)

"Contents." Encyclopedia of Social Networks. Ed. George A. Barnett. Vol. 1. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Reference, 2011. [v]. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 27 Jan. 2013.

Document URL
http://0-go.galegroup.com.oswald.clark.edu/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CCX1959500005&v=2.1&u=clark_integrated&it=r&p=GVRL&sw=w