Tim Berners-Lee

Science / Scientists Datebook: June 8

 

Brief biography of Tim Berners-Lee, English Computer Scientist and Engineer, inventor of the World Wide Web.   

 

Sir Tim Berners-Lee created the World Wide Web (WWW) or the Internet, a computer tool that transformed modern life over the past two decades since his invention submission.   

 

 

Early Life of Sir Tim Berners-Lee

Timothy Berners-Lee  was born on June 8, 1955 in London. His parents, Conway Berners-Lee and Mary Lee Woods are both pioneering computer scientists. He studied at Queen’s College in Oxford, with a first-class degree in Physics.  

After graduating he worked in software design, including a 6-month contract in 1980s at CERN, the European Particle Physics Laboratory in Switzerland. While at work, he wanted to facilitate the flow of information from one colleague’s computer to another, writing a computer program, Enquire, which later developed into the World Wide Web. 

Berners-Lee devised the coding system HTML which stands for “hypertext mark-up language” with its system of “jump” links, and HTTP to link computer to computer, and the web page or URL universal resource locator) system. Simply, it is a successful communication between an HTTP client and server via the Internet. 

 

The World Wide Web Invention Impact

Interlinking or networking of computers has gone a long way. In the 1970s, a grid of interlinked computers were organised to form an Internet, Engineer Tim Berners-Lee, 19 years later, created the World Wide Web, making it extremely easy to use the Internet, that is, anyone with a personal computer and a telephone line could join in. 

In 1991, Berners-Lee launched a browser leading to the creation of the World Wide Web, now simply called the Internet, initially largely confined to educational and specialist institutional users.

The Web’s impact was immediate, with users into millions. Since its launch, the Web or the Internet has become an indispensable part of modern life in the developed world, and even in the developing world, with its immediate access to a huge quantity of information, to business, and most especially, email. 

 

Sir Tim Berners-Lee’s Honours and Awards

Tim Berners-Lee’s invention submission led to one of the most remarkable communication revolutions that altered people’s interactions. His modest dream for a common space that encourages people to share information, became a remarkable communication revolution. 

He has received numerous awards and honours, including the Sir Frank Wittle Medal, the Albert Medal. In 2004, he received his knighthood from Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II. However, unlike others involved in colossal technology developments reaping vast profits, Sir Timothy Berners-Lee chooses to continue living a more modest life.  

His acquaintances and influences include Doug Engelbart, Ted Nelson, Robert Khan and Vinton Cerf.

 

Photo Credit:

Sir Tim Berners-Lee. Wikipedia Commons. Photo owned by Paul Clarke: Sir Tim arriving at the Guildhall to receive the Honorary Freedom of the City of London.

 

Resources:

Clark, John, Ed. Illustrated Biographical Dictionary. London: Chancellor Press, 1978

Ellyard David. Great Inventions. Sydney: New Holland, 2007

McGovern, Una, Editor. Chambers Biographical Dictionary. Edinburgh: Chambers, 2002

Moore, Pete. E=MC²: The Great Ideas That Shaped Our World. London: Quintet Publishing, 2002

 

(c) June 2010. Updated June 8, 2024. Tel. Inspired Pen Web. All rights reserved.