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By linking several pages within a website or even redirecting you to other websites to expand on information or ideas immediately as you encounter them,hyperlinks allow the Web to operate along the same lines as our thought patterns.The Web is so much a part of our lives because in content and structure,it reflects both the wider society and our individual minds.And it connects those minds across all boundaries,not only enthnicity, gender, and agebut even time and space.

But what really makes the Web so special lies in its very name.Prior to the Web,we used to consume most information in a linear fashion.In a book or newspaper article,each sentence was read from beginning to end,page by page,in a straight line until you reached the end.But that isn't how our brains actually work.Each of our thoughts is linked to other thoughts,memories, and emotions in a loose interconnected network, like a web.Tim Berners-Lee, the father of the World Wide Web,understood that we needed a way to organize information that mirrored this natural arrangement.And the Web accomplishes this through hyperlinks.

Just like with a real life address,a website address lets you get where you want to go.The information stored in the websites is in web languages,such as HTML and JavaScript.When we find the website we're looking for,our web browser is able to take all the code on the site and turn it into words, graphics, and videos.We don't need to know any special computer languages because the web browser creates a graphic interface for us.

So, in a lot of ways,the World Wide Web is a big virtual city where we communicate with each other in web languages,with browsers acting as our translators.And just like no one owns a city,no one owns the Web;it belongs to all of us.Anyone can move in and set up shop.We might have to pay an Internet service provider to gain access,a hosting company to rent web space,or a registrar to reserve our web address.Like utility companies in a city,these companies provide crucial services,but in the end,not even they own the Web.

When someone starts a website,they are renting a room in this skyscraper,filling it with information and linking that information together in an organized way for others to access.The people who own these skyscrapers and rent space in them are called web hosts,but anyone can set up a web server with the right equipment a bit of know-how.There's another part to having a website,without which we would be lost in the city with no way of finding what we need.This is the website address,which consists of domain names.

When the Internet first emerged,computers actually made direct calls to each other.Today, networks are all around us,so computers can communicate seamlessly.The communication enabled through the Internet has many uses,such as email, file transfer, and conferencing.But the most common use is accessing the World Wide Web.Think of the Web as a bunch of skyscrapers,each representing a web server,a computer always connected to the Internet,specifically designed to store information and share it.

The World Wide Web,where you're likely watching this video,is used by millions of people every day for everything from checking the weather,ordering food,and chatting with friends to raising funds,sharing news,or starting revolutions.We use it from our computers, our phones, even our cars.It's just there,all around us, all the time.But what is it exactly?Well first of all, the World Wide Web is not the Internet,even though the terms are often used interchangeably.The Internet is simply the way computers connect to each other in order to share information.

It is hard to imagine modern civilization without glass.And yet for such an important material we rarely think about glass and its impact.It is precisely because the most important and useful quality of glass is being featureless and invisible that we often forget that it's even there.

Otherwise, it will just let the photon pass by,and it just so happens that in glass,the rows are so far apart that a photon of visible light can't provide enough energy for an electron to jump between them.Photons from ultraviolet light, on the other hand,give just the right amount of energy,and are absorbed,which is why you can't get a suntan through glass.This amazing property of being both solid and transparent has given glass many uses throughout the centuries.From windows that let in light while keeping out the elements,to lenses that allow us to see both the vast worlds beyond our planet,and the tiny ones right around us.

So the real question is not why is glass transparent,but why aren't all materials transparent?The answer has to do with the different energy levels that electrons in an atom can have.Think of these as different rows of seats in the stadium stands.An electron is initially assigned to sit in a certain row,but it could jump to a better row,if it only had the energy.As luck would have it,absorbing one of those light photons passing through the atom can provide just the energy the electron needs.But there's a catch.The energy from the photon has to be the right amount to get an electron to the next row.

But this still doesn't explain why light is able to pass through glass rather than being absorbed as with most solids.For that, we need to go all the way down to the subatomic level.You may know that an atom consists of a nucleus with electrons orbiting around it,but you may be surprised to know that it's mostly empty space.In fact, if an atom were the size of a sports stadium,the nucleus would be like a single pea in the center,while the electrons would be like grains of sand in the outer seats.That should leave plenty of space for light to pass through without hitting any of these particles.

Unlike water, though, liquid silicon dioxide does not reform into a crystal solid when it cools.Instead, as the molecules lose energy,they are less and less able to move into an ordered position,and the result is what is called an amorphous solid.A solid material with the chaotic structure of a liquid,which allows the molecules to freely fill in any gaps.This makes the surface of glass uniform on a microscopic level,allowing light to strike it without being scattered in different directions.

These react together to form silicon dioxide,whose molecules arrange themselves into a regular crystalline form known as quartz.Quartz is commonly found in sand,where it often makes up most of the grains and is the main ingredient in most type of glass.Of course, you probably noticed that glass isn't made of multiple tiny bits of quartz,and for good reason.For one thing, the edges of the rigidly formed grains and smaller defects within the crystal structure reflect and disperse light that hits them.But when the quartz is heated high enough the extra energy makes the molecules vibrate until they break the bonds holding them togetherand become a flowing liquid,the same way that ice melts into water.

Take a look out your window,put on your glasses if you wear them.You might want to grab a pair of binoculars, too,or a magnifying lens.Now, what do you see?Well, whatever it is,it's not the multiple layers of glass right in front of you.But have you ever wondered how something so solid can be so invisible?To understand that,we have to understand what glass actually is,and where it comes from.It all begins in the Earth's crust,where the two most common elements are silicon and oxygen.

Numerous structures around the city transform into water storage facilities,including parking garages and plazas which normally serve as theaters and sports arenas.Meanwhile in the harbor, floating pavilions rise with the water level.These are the first of several planned amphibious structures,some of which house water purification systems and solar collectors.These strategies are just some of the technologies and policies that have put the Netherlands at the cutting edge of water management.The country continues to find new ways to make cities more resilient to natural disasters.And as the rising sea levels caused by climate change threaten low-lying cities across the world,the Netherlands offers an exceptional example of how to go with the flow.

Under the Room for the River" plan,farms and dikes were relocated away from the shore.This left more space for water to collect in low-lying floodplains,creating reservoirs and habitats for local wildlife.This strategic retreat not only decreased flood risk,but allowed for the redeveloped settlements to be built more densely and sustainably.Perhaps no city embodies the Netherlands' multi-pronged approach to water management as much as Rotterdam, a thriving city almost entirely below sea level.When a storm threatens,densely populated older districts are protected by traditional dikes.Meanwhile, newer districts have been artificially elevated,often sporting green roofs that store rainwater.

In 1998, the completed Maeslantkeringprovided the flexible protection necessary.Alongside additional barriers, like grassy dikes and concrete seawalls,these fortifications made up the bulk of the Delta Works project,which was primarily focused on holding back ocean storms.But in the following decades, the Dutch pursued additional plans to complement the Delta Works and protect against floods further inland.

These large inlets fed many of the country’s rivers into the North Sea,and during storms they allowed flood water to surge inland.Using a series of dams, the Delta into expansive lakes that serve as nature preserves and community parks.However, this solution wouldn’t work for the Nieuwe Waterweg.As the lifeblood of the local shipping industry,this passage had to be kept open in safe conditions,and barricaded during storm surges.

The country lies along the delta of three major European rivers,and nearly a quarter of its territory is below sea level.This geography makes the region extremely prone to flooding.So much so, that some of the earliest Dutch governing bodies were informal “water boards” that coordinated flood protection projects.But after the storms of 1953, the Dutch government took more official measures.They established the Delta Commission,and tasked them with protecting the entire southwestern region.Focusing on densely populated cities,their aim was to reduce the annual odds of flooding below 1 in 10,000—about 100 times as safe as the average coastal city.Accomplishing this lofty goal required various infrastructure projectsalong the southwestern coast.The first line of defense was to dam the region’s flood-prone estuaries.

The first field activation of the Maeslantkeringhad been a resounding success.As one of the planet’s largest mobile structures,this storm surge barrier is a marvel of human engineering.But the Maeslantkering is just one partof a massive,interlocking system of water controls known as the Delta Works—the most sophisticated flood prevention project in the world.The Netherlands has a long history with water management.

In January of 1953, a tidal surge shook the North Sea.The titanic waves flooded the Dutch coastline,killing almost 2,000 people.54 years later, a similar storm threatened the region.But this time, the Netherlands were ready.As the water swelled,state-of-the-art computer sensors activated emergency protocols.Over the next 30 minutes,a pair of 240-meter steel arms swung shut,protecting the channel ahead.Using 680-tonne ball joints,the barrier moved in rhythm with the shifting wind and waves.By morning, the storm had passed with minimal flooding.