Where Wizards Stay Up Late: The Origins of the Internet

Checked out this book from the library tonight. The Prologue debunks the myth that the Internet (or its predecessor, ARPANET) arose out of national security concerns and seeking a means to communicate after a nuclear war. Hard now to imagine life without the Net. (The book's authors have created a companion website here).

The book takes its title from a poem:

Los Alamos' lights where wizards stay up late
(Stay in the car, forget the gate)
To save the world or end it, time will tell

-- James Merrill, "Under Libra: Weights and Measures," from Braving the Elements