The Information Technology Revolution and the Changes of Networking!

Networks, what are they, how are they defined, what constitutes as a network? Wordnetweb.com defines networks as "an interconnected system of things or people" which can be construed as a huge variety of different platforms. Networks of some description have been established throughout history; even our Neanderthal ancestors would have had some sort of hunting or travelling network. A more relevant and organised example would be the Roman Aqueduct network supplying water and removing waste, essentially 'connecting' towns, villages and cities with something they required. Looking at this from an anthropological perspective you could say the creation and use of networks is a fundamental part of human existence, something as society we always aim to establish in order to improve existence.

In a post-modern society we have the internet, this in many respects is THE network, there’s still flight, shipping and trade networks in place to name a few but the web is connecting nearly all the areas of the globe; and it’s still growing. The Internet is now becoming as much use as your right hand, for most of us using a computer is second nature and regular use of the internet is an essential part of life. In fact the BBC News website states in an article that relates to the internet as a fundamental human right that "Countries such as Finland and Estonia have already ruled that access is a human right for their citizens." So this is the future, as the trading of goods and products still stands in a post industrial society the exchange of ideas and information now takes prestige in a non material form superseding our previous conceptions of networks.

So Albion Shackers I leave you with an influencial quote I found from Dr Hamadoun Toure, secretary-general of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) ""The internet is the most powerful potential source of enlightenment ever created."