UCLA Holds 35th Anniversary of the Internet Symposium October 29

Google CEO Eric Schmidt to be Keynote Speaker

Date: October 8, 2004
Contact: Chris Sutton ( chris@ea.ucla.edu )
Phone: 310-206-0540

UCLA, the birthplace of the Internet, marks the 35th anniversary of the first message ever sent, with a symposium October 29. For more information go to http://www.internetanniversary.com.

The UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science will celebrate the 35th anniversary of the first Internet message with an exciting, thought-provoking symposium on Friday, October 29.

Many of the Internet's early pioneers, influential industry leaders and insightful young visionaries will offer their perspectives on how the Internet came to be what it is today and what it will be like tomorrow.

The keynote address, "A Conversation with Eric Schmidt and Leonard Kleinrock," will be an interactive exchange with Google Inc.'s chief executive officer, Eric Schmidt and Leonard Kleinrock.

On October 29, 1969, UCLA computer science professor Leonard Kleinrock led a team of engineers in launching the first message from one computer to another on what was then called the ARPANET. The message, sent from the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science to Stanford Research Institute, was the word "lo."

"When we sent that first message, it marked the birth of a new method of global communications that has forever changed the course of business, politics, entertainment, education and social interaction," said Kleinrock. "Now, 35 years later, the Internet has become so pervasive that even my 97-year-old mother uses it."

The 35th Anniversary of the Internet event is sponsored by Broadcom, Cisco Systems and NetZero.

Through original presentations and lively discussions, the symposium's well-known speakers will examine four distinct sides of the Internet.

First, in a session called "The Bright Side: Gorillas of the Internet," some of the technology industry's heaviest hitters will discuss the Internet's role in today's tech-driven economy. New York Times reporter John Markoff will moderate this session. Speakers include:

• Bob Aiken, director of engineering for Cisco's Academic Research and Technology Initiatives;
• Gordon Bell, senior researcher at Microsoft's Bay Area Research Center;
  
• Pat Gelsinger, senior vice president and chief technology officer of Intel Corp.;
  
• Henry Samueli, co-founder, chairman and chief technical officer of Broadcom Corp., and professor of electrical engineering at UCLA.

In the second session, called "The Global Side: Impact Beyond Technology," expert commentators and pioneering technologists will discuss the social, political and educational implications of the globalization of the Internet. This session will be moderated by Tim O'Reilly, founder and CEO of O'Reilly Media. Speakers include:

• John Perry Barlow, a retired Wyoming cattle rancher, a former lyricist for the Grateful Dead and co-founder of the Electronic Frontier Foundation;
• Dan Gillmor, columnist for the San Jose Mercury News and author of the new book "We the Media: Grassroots Journalism for the People by the People;"
• David Patterson, professor and Pardee Chair of Computer Science, University of California, Berkeley;
• Larry Press, professor of information systems at California State University, Dominguez Hills.

In the third session, "The Young Side: The Indigenous Digital Generation," NYU Professor Clay Shirky moderates a discussion on how emerging applications of the Internet, from Friendster to blogging to mobile technologies are changing the way young people use technology. Speakers include:

• danah boyd, a Ph.D student at the University of California, Berkeley and a prolific blogger;
• Xeni Jardin, tech culture journalist and co-editor of the award-winning weblog BoingBoing.
• Alan Kay, a senior fellow at HP labs and an adjunct professor of computer science at UCLA;
• Ethan Zuckerman, a fellow at Harvard Law School's Berkman Center for Internet and Society and founder of Geekcorps.

In the fourth session, "The Future Side: Pioneers and Visionaries," the four fathers of the Internet predict what the future holds for one of the most influential technologies ever developed. The session will be moderated by Bran Ferren, CCO at Applied Minds. Speakers include:

• Vint G. Cerf, senior vice president of Technology Strategy for MCI and co-designer of the TCP/IP communications protocols;
• Robert E. Kahn, chairman, CEO and president of the Corporation for National Research Initiatives and co-designer of the TCP/IP protocols;
• Leonard Kleinrock, professor of computer science at the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science, who developed the mathematical theory of packet networks and in whose lab the first Internet message was sent;
• Lawrence G. Roberts, founder, CEO of Anagran and founder, vice chairman of Caspian Networks, who was the driving force behind the development of the Arpanet while Director of Information Processing Techniques for ARPA.

Other commentators continue to join the event's list of speakers. To register as a guest, or for more information about the 35th Anniversary of the Internet at UCLA, go to http://www.internetanniversary.com.