The Origins of the Internet - StepRead2

The Origins of the Internet

by ReadWorks

Back in 1969, a group of men were waiting in a room. They were waiting for something very important
to happen. In front of them was a computer and a smaller machine. The computer was huge. It was
many times bigger than the computers people use today. A wire from the computer was hooked up to
the machine. The men were waiting to see if information from the computer would flow through the
wire to the machine. This had never happened before. This group of men included computer
scientists. They were all nervous. They tapped their feet. They couldn't wait to see what happened
next.

A man named Len was in this group. He was the most nervous. He was the one who had engineered,
or designed, the way information was supposed to move from the computer to the machine. He knew
how to build computer networks. These are groups of connected computers. Len later explained that
everyone in the room was ready to blame someone else if the information didn't flow as it should
have. But in the end, it did. Len said this was the day the Internet came to life.

Len had been working on engineering a connection between computers for years. He first became
interested in making these networks when he was working at a university called MIT. He remembered
being surrounded by computers at the university. He knew that one day these computers would have
to send information to each other. Back then, there was no way to do this.

As Len was figuring out how to do this, a lot of big things were happening in science. The United
States was spending more time and money on science. The United States wanted to be the first
country to visit space and explore it. But then another country sent the first satellite into space. A
satellite is an object that moves around a planet. Some Americans were embarrassed that another
ReadWorks.org · © 2013 ReadWorks®, Inc. All rights reserved.
 The Origins of the Internet - StepRead2

country did this before the United States did. The president of the United States at that time started a
new organization. It was focused on creating new innovations in technology. An innovation is a new
idea or product. The president wanted to make sure that America would always be the leader in
science. He didn't want the United States to fall behind another country again.

In 1962, this organization created a new group focused on computer science. The leader of this group
was a man named Joseph. He had worked as a scientist at the same university as Len. He had even
been Len's boss for some time. Like Len, he also worked on building networks of computers. Len
explained that Joseph was a great thinker. He knew how helpful it would be to bring together the
powers of computers and humans. Joseph was one of the first people to realize this. He knew that
amazing things could happen as a result. Joseph believed that building networks of computers would
let people use computers in really helpful ways. He shared this idea with the group.

Another man named Bob later became the leader of the computer science group. He wanted to get
more support for the computer network project. Bob wanted to find a way for people doing research in
different places to share information using computers. This would make doing research much easier
and less expensive. Bob needed to create a network of computers to make this happen. He asked a
man named Larry to build this network. It turns out that Larry used to work in the same office as Len
at MIT.

Larry knew a lot about Len's work on building these computer networks. He knew Len could help
build the network of computers. So he got Len to help out with the project. After some years, the
network was finally built.

This work was the reason why all those men were waiting together in that room. They were hoping
the computer could send information to the machine through the wire. So they yelled with joy when it
did. But it wasn't until a few weeks later when a message from one computer was sent to another
over the Internet. This was a really big deal.

This message was sent by Len and another engineer. They tried to log in from their computer to
another one that was somewhere else. They had to send the message "login" to that computer in
order to log in. But things stopped working after they sent the first two letters, "lo." These two letters
were the first message ever sent over the Internet.

The word "lo" is used to call attention to something amazing. Len believes this was the shortest and
most powerful message they could have come up with by accident. What he did that day really was
amazing. He helped build something that ended up changing the world.

ReadWorks.org · © 2013 ReadWorks®, Inc. All rights reserved.

 The Origins of the Internet - Comprehension Questions

Name: ___________________________________ Date: _______________

1. What was Len Kleinrock attempting to do for the first time in history?
A. He was attempting to build a computer.
B. He was attempting to send a telephone message.
C. He was attempting to exchange information between a computer and a router.
D. He was attempting to combine humans and computers.

2. How does the author describe the mood of Kleinrock and the others in the room with
him?
A. They were nervous and impatient.
B. They were bored and tired.
C. They were angry and frustrated.
D. They were cheerful and relaxed.

3. Read the following sentences: "The Soviet Union's famous launch of a satellite called
Sputnik had been an embarrassment for the United States-the United States thought
that it should be the leader of space travel. Eisenhower created a branch within the
Department of Defense to ensure that the scientific leadership of America wouldn't be
eclipsed again in the future. This new organization, the Advanced Research Projects
Agency (ARPA), became one of the major engines of technological innovation
throughout the 1960s and 1970s."

Based on this information, what can be concluded?

A. The Department of Defense was separate from the Advanced Research Projects
Agency.
B. The United States and the Soviet Union worked closely together on science and
technology research despite their political differences.
C. The United States government was hesitant to support science and technology
research because it was too expensive and complex.
D. The United States government heavily supported science and technology research
as a way to keep its leadership in the world.

ReadWorks.org · © 2019 ReadWorks®, Inc. All rights reserved.

 The Origins of the Internet - Comprehension Questions

4. Why was it important for computers in different locations to be able to communicate

with each other?
A. America and the Soviet Union needed to be on touch over scientific issues.
B. Scientists were getting bored with the work they were doing.
C. It was too expensive for computers in different places to do every task on their own.
D. It would make it easier for the Americans to spy on the Soviet Union..

5. What is the main idea of this passage?

A. Len Kleinrock's work led to the creation of the Internet.
B. The United States lost the technological race to the Soviet Union.
C. Len Kleinrock hoped to create the Internet, but his attempt failed after the computer
system crashed.
D. The Internet was created as a result of an enormous accident.

6. Read the following sentences: "The Soviet Union's famous launch of a satellite called
Sputnik had been an embarrassment for the United States-the United States thought
that it should be the leader of space travel. Eisenhower created a branch within the
Department of Defense to ensure that the scientific leadership of America wouldn't be
eclipsed again in the future."

As used in the passage, what does the word "eclipsed" mean?

A. surpassed
B. destroyed
C. punished
D. wasted

ReadWorks.org · © 2019 ReadWorks®, Inc. All rights reserved.

 The Origins of the Internet - Comprehension Questions

7. Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below.

The United States was eager to invest more in science and technology
research,_______after the Soviet Union's launch of Sputnik.

A. because
B. instead
C. finally
D. particularly

8. Why had Len Kleinrock and the other computer scientists gathered to observe the
computer and the router?

9. What did Bob Taylor, who was in charge of computer science at ARPA, need to do in
order to reduce the cost of different computer science projects at universities across the
country?

ReadWorks.org · © 2019 ReadWorks®, Inc. All rights reserved.

 The Origins of the Internet - Comprehension Questions

10. Why was Len Kleinrock's work on network connection a significant development in
computer science? Use information from the passage to support your answer.

ReadWorks.org · © 2019 ReadWorks®, Inc. All rights reserved.