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Aleks in Wonderland: The Story of the Internet

Documentaries

Factual: Science & Nature

Aleks Krotoski unravels the complexity of the internet.

Aleks in Wonderland: The Story of the Internet: Series 1

Aleks in Wonderland: The Story of the Internet: Series 1: The International League of Geeky Gentlemen

Factual

16/08/2017

The International League of Geeky Gentlemen

Series 1

BBC Radio 4 - Aleks in Wonderland: The Story of the Internet, Series 1, The International League of Geeky Gentlemen

The origins of the internet, and why nobody thought of making it secure.

Aleks Krotoski explores the origins of the internet and finds out why nobody thought of making it secure.

Just how did the Internet become the most powerful communications medium on the planet, and why does it seem to be an uncontrollable medium for good and bad?
With no cross border regulation the internet can act as an incredible force for connecting people and supporting human rights and yet at the same time convey the most offensive material imaginable. 
It has become the most useful research tool on earth but also the most effective way of delivering threats to the security of governments, the health service and on a personal level our own identities.
In this series Aleks Krotoski unravels the complexity of the internet, meeting the people who really invented it, looking behind the myths and cultural constructs to explain what it actually is and how it came to exist outside of conventional regulation.
We'll ask whether the nature of the net itself really is cause for concern - and if so what can be done to reign in the negatives of the internet without restricting the positives? 

In this first episode we go back to the days before the internet to look at the cultural and technological landscape from which it grew, and unravel some of the key moments - now lost in time and obscured by technology folklore, which mark when the internet lost its innocence.

Intelligent speech, the most insightful journalism, the wittiest comedy, the most fascinating features and the most compelling drama and readings anywhere in UK radio.

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Aleks in Wonderland: The Story of the Internet

Series 1

The International League of Geeky Gentlemen

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