Реферат: Internet helps in development of education and democracy /english/

Internet helps in development of education and democracy

Max Bratukhin

Eco-11

Internet helps in development of education and democracy

Internet - the world largest computer network. And the main goal is to
show how Web's freedom will help in development of education and
democracy.

Internet appeared in our country just a few years ago but it has become
known to many people not only in the capital of Kyrgyzstan but also all
over the republic. And the same thing happens in many developing
countries – third world countries. After third world countries got
access to the Internet they became wide represented on the net. Thy
found out a lot of useful information there and gave information about
themselves there. But why do people want to be "on the Internet"? As
Bruce Sterling famous American Internet critic answers in his article
Internet: "One of the mail reasons is simple freedom." Yes people can
feel freedom on the Internet. In the countries of the third world like
Kyrgyzstan after going the Internet people will find out how to be free
and the best example of the freedom nowadays is democracy. Also people
in autocratic countries would like to build democracy instead of their
system of government because they would know what does it mean to be
free and independent. In other words people who has got into the way of
living in the better virtual world will never want to live in bad
conditions and they will make their lives better for sure.

But what does this freedom of the Internet includes? Firstly it is
equality. It does not matter what your race or age or nationality or
wealth is you can post your message to the Internet and you will be
heard. You will find a lot of people who will support you and who will
not support you. You will find your allies and enemies there. And this
is the freedom to express your opinion, which is the fundamental
principle of the democracy.

But the newspaper Vecherny Bishkek says in its informational article:

"Internet users communicate only with the people on the Internet. They
stop talking to their relatives and friends because they have only
virtual friends. So Internet destroys real human communication". Maybe
someone's interpersonal communication wes destroyed but now technology
can give us an opportunity to communicate with our relatives and friends
as if we are in a same room. People can be close to each other even
being on different continents. And if a person is mentally normal he/she
will never prefer communication with relatives to a computer.

Next is the freedom of choice. On the Internet you can choose the
information to your own taste or need. Nobody can make you to look at
something that you do not need or do not like. If you don’t like
something you just type another address and in a seconds you are already
there where you wanted to be. But what can you choose from these
different resources? It may be pornography or silly games. But according
to Glukhov Konstantin reporter on the Internet for Computerra magazine:
"Only 5-7% of all the Internet users view pornography on net." So these
people will not influence all the rest "inhabitants". And about the
games. There are "tons" of very useful games, which will help you to
understand the economy of the city, improve your language skills and
vocabulary or at least you will get a better skills in using the
"mouse".

There is also a freedom of movement. There are no borders in the
Internet and you can travel all over the Internet without any
prohibitions. If you need some information about some foreign country
you will get it. You do not need any visas to explore web sites in
foreign countries.

Also you can vote on the Internet. There are a lot of questionnaires
where you can express your attitude towards something. So the main
principles of the democracy are kept on the Internet. So people in the
third world countries at least will understand what does it mean to be
free. And according to Phil James: "This system is democratic. Anyone
[with computer] can use its service." As I said before it does not
matter who you are.

Internet is so free that it even may seem like anarchy but if it is an
anarchy then, according to Bruce Sterling, it is "a rare example of
true, modern, functional anarchy". But what does this "anarchy" gives
us? Firstly it is absence of censors. And as it said Harley Hahn, whose
books' printout is 2,5 million issues and who is considered as an ace of
the Internet: "The main rule of the Net is that there is no one-man
management and no any censorship. And only because of this freedom there
is such a great variety of different resources". And we can use all
these resources for our educational purposes. And as I said previously
anyone can find information to his own choice. The Internet makes it
easier to find books (for example for your research paper) or articles
and now even listen and watch famous people. Harley Hahn also mentioned
that "it has so much information in the Internet that nobody can imagine
it". That is why you can choose it to your own taste or need.

Now teachers, students, professors, scientists, librarians, lawyers and
priests use Internet to search for the useful information because it is
the fastest and the most convenient way to do it. "The Internet is the
most important scientific instrument of the late twentieth century,"
says Bruce Sterling. We can get data for our research just in seconds
after pushing some buttons. This is no small deal, since entire books
can be transferred through Internet in a matter of minutes. Today
millions of such files are available to anyone who asks for them. We
also can use these files in Kyrgyzstan. For example Ed Krol writes:
"third world countries now view the Internet as a way to rise their
education level". For example Mongolia. During the Soviet era and later
Mongolian education level was the lowest among communist countries and
it was until the 1993 when Mongolia got the access to the Internet.
Nowadays most of the Mongolian universities have the access to the Net.
"Now most of the students can use the Internet for their educational
purposes" said in the RIPE report. Even if third world countries do it,
this means that well developed countries began to do in the past. And
where the Internet is well developed educational level is also very
high. Also Ed Krol says that "communication allows the research and
education process to speed up", because scientists can exchange data
with each other very quickly, so they can solve their problems very
fast. They can collaborate even being far from each other, being in
different countries. That is how the educational level will rise up.

Conclusion is that the Internet will help to develop our educational
level due to its democracy and freedom. And after the people will find
out what is freedom they will develop democracy in their country. After
that the Internet will guide us to the one open society there will be no
borders on the Earth any more. And we will live in peace and will
respect each other like in the Internet.

Kabar's information, Vecherny Bishkek, February 12, 1999:8

Glukhov, Konstantin, Computerra magazine, Internet goes on, October
1998:36

James, Phil, Official Netscape Communicator 4 book, Ventana, New York,
1998:29

Sterling

Hahn, Harley, Yellow Pages Internet & Web, Osborne, New York, 1998:41

ibid:34

Sterling

Krol, Ed, The Whole Internet. User's Guide & Catalog 2nd edition,
O'Riely & Associates, Inc, 1994:18

RIPE report '98, Paris, 1998:53

Krol: 26