How old is the Internet?

The Internet is 35 years old. J.C.R. Licklider of the Massachusetts of Technology first proposed a global network of computers in 1962, and moved to the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to develop it. Leonard Kleinrock developed the theory of packet switching, the basis of Internet connections. On September 2, 1969, Stephen Crocker and Vinton Cerf, two graduate students at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), linked two large computers using a 15-foot cable and tested a new way to exchange data. In January, three other...

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What is a wedsite?

It is a website where a couple posts information about their upcoming or recent wedding. After the wedding, pictures and posts are uploaded; it could also beinteractive. It is a relatively new concept and includes information as to how the couple met, invitations to friends and relatives, wedding clothes of the bride and groom, the ‘wedding album’ photo gallery and blogs related to pre- and post-wedding events. Wedsites also help clients share stories and view posted greetings from friends and relatives. Some wedsites are set up by agencies that...

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How did the expression 'an albatross around one's neck' originate?

The origin of the term lies in Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s classic ballad, ‘The Rime of the Ancient Mariner’. It means to carry the burden of guilt. In the poem, the mariner’s ship gets stuck in ice at the South Pole. At that juncture, an albatross flies over the ship and eventually guides the sailors to safe waters. But once they are safe, the mariner impulsively shoots down the divine bird with his arrow. Soon after this, the ship stalls again, a heat wave occurs and the sailors are starved of water. The sailors then hang the dead albatross...

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What was the Dutch Tulip craze?

After the introduction of tulips into Europe from Turkey in 1554, they became objects of wild financial speculation in 17th century Holland. By the 1630s, the tulip-growing frenzy grew into the Dutch Tulip craze or the tulip-mania. A single tulip bulb sometimes cost a whopping 4,500 guilders (the price then of a large house plus a horse and carriage). After many went bankrupt, the crisis was ended by government regulation and a major market cra...

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