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World-Infostructure Knowledge Base The objective of World-Infostructure's knowledge base is to bring focus to the human dimension of information and communication technologies in a dynamic world of vested interests. It is designed to provide an overview of the status quo, the development and the history of the Infosphere as well as to enhance the visibility of issues of public interest that arise in connection with the emergence of digital media and computer networks. World-Infostructure's research matrix focuses on digitization, globalization, consolidation, integration, concentration, commercialization, participation, cooperation, innovation, emancipation, democratization, diversification, convergence and empowerment and is divided into eight main areas: World-Infostructure: history of communication systems; slaves and expert systems; biometrics; biotechnology convergence Global Networks: development, functioning and administration of global data networks Global Markets: proprietary relationships; issues of regulation Global Brain-Ware: information politics; dynamics of opinion-making Global Content Channels: content production and distribution; public vs. commercial interest; digital copyright; PR and advertising Global Info-Rights: censorship; online activism; disinformation; digital divide Global Security: surveillance, security and control technologies; data protection and cryptography; ECHELON Global Data Bodies: virtualization of social identity; abuse and marketing of personal data All World-Infostructure content is cross-linked and supplemented by so-called Index Cards that provide more detailed information on specific terms and World-Information.Org's Link Base, which is a fast tool for locating independent information and critical analysis on the web and contains several hundred hand-selected URLs that are accompanied by short descriptions and categorized by the eight research areas of World-Infostructure. World-Infostructure presents the results of the research program that has been carried out in connection with World-Information.Org since autumn 1999.  INDEX CARD     RESEARCH MATRIX  Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA) DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) is the independent research branch of the U.S. Department of Defense that, among its other accomplishments, funded a project that in time was to lead to the creation of the Internet. Originally called ARPA (the "D" was added to its name later), DARPA came into being in 1958 as a reaction to the success of Sputnik, Russia's first manned satellite. DARPA's explicit mission was (and still is) to think independently of the rest of the military and to respond quickly and innovatively to national defense challenges. In the late 1960s, DARPA provided funds and oversight for a project aimed at interconnecting computers at four university research sites. By 1972, this initial network, now called the ARPAnet, had grown to 37 computers. ARPANet and the technologies that went into it, including the evolving Internet Protocol (IP) and the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), led to the Internet that we know today. http://www.darpa.mil