[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 19] [Senate] [Page 26272] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]40TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE INTERNET Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I rise today to celebrate the 40th anniversary of an event that is referred to as the ``birthday'' of the Internet. On October 29, 1969, Dr. Leonard Kleinrock of the University of California, Los Angeles, and his team successfully transmitted the first message to their counterparts at Stanford University, led by Dr. Douglas Engelbart, via a network system that was the predecessor of today's Internet. I wonder if Drs. Kleinrock and Engelbart ever imagined the full impact and transformative nature of their experiment, not only on California and the United States, but also the world? From those original tubes between UCLA and Stanford, the Internet has grown into a global network, facilitating important communication, commerce and services around the world. The Internet allows scientists to share research and findings. Consumers can shop almost anywhere in the world via the Internet and have their purchases delivered to their doorstep. Government services, from emergency information to registration of motor vehicles, can be accessed through the Internet. The Internet has also been an important economic engine for our country, and I am proud that my state of California has been home to many innovators, such as Google and eBay, who transformed ideas into successful multinational businesses. This anniversary also serves to remind us of the importance of collaborative research efforts between our government and universities, like the UCLA and Stanford. The first network system used by Drs. Kleinrock and Engelbart, called ARPANET, was developed through funding and collaboration between the universities and the Department of Defense. Today, we must remember that universities and their researchers remain a vital resource in facing and solving the challenges of the future. I want to close by congratulating the UCLA, Stanford University, and Drs. Kleinrock and Engelbart, for their hard work and contributions to the development of the Internet over the years. Forty years after that first successful message, the Internet continues to transform our lives and the world. ____________________