S e c o n d e d I t I o n 1 Reading for the Real World 1

Fill in the blanks with the words from the list. Use each word only once.
Although it has only a short history, the Internet has had a great impact on 
modern society. The concept of the Internet came from military research in the 
1960s. The military wanted to 
1 
_________________ its research and control 
centers through connections to many locations by computers. As more and more 
people began using the system during the 1980s, privacy and security became an 
issue due to the threat of 
2 
_________________ and viruses. In the 1990s, the 
development of the Internet 
3 
_________________ rapidly thanks to the World 
Wide Web and the invention of the first computer 
4 
_________________ for web 
pages. Soon after, fiber optic 
5 
_________________ made the Internet faster and 
able to carry much more information. In decades to come, 
6 
_________________ 
devices will be used instead of computers to retrieve information from the Internet.
portable 
code 
hackers
cables 
accelerated 
access

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S 
upplemental Reading
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O 
ne of the most important things that the 
Internet has fostered or strengthened 
has been freedom of speech and 
freedom of expression. The Internet is a very large 
common public area that is shared by people all 
around the world. Due to the diversity of the Net’s 
users, no one standard can be applied to govern 
speech on the Net. Furthermore, the Internet technology itself prevents complete 
blocking of access to information. 
The Internet has helped to promote political freedom in many cases and 
allowed protesters a way to express their discontent. In 1990, the Internet 
allowed Chinese dissidents to bypass government censorship and inform the 
world Chinese community of the rebellion in Tiananmen Square and its tragic 
outcome. Similarly in 1991, people both in the Soviet Union and around the 
world were able to access eyewitness accounts of the attempted coup against 
Mikhail Gorbachev in spite of an information blackout. During Iraq’s invasion of 
Kuwait, Internet users got up-to-date information through Internet connections 
with Kuwait even though radio and television broadcasts had been cut off. 
In the late 1990s, many countries became alarmed at the freedom of speech 
accessible on the Internet and tried to restrict it. Singapore mandated that 
political and religious sites must register with the government. China ordered 
that all Internet users register with the police. And Saudi Arabia restricted 
Internet use to only universities and hospitals. However, due to the nature of the 
Internet, none of these efforts has had much lasting effect.