Could we survive an internet apocalypse? On Monday a tiny error shut down a swathe of the world’s biggest websites. Some say it might point to a future that is not too far away.
The tiny error that took out Snapchat
Swirling into the void: The apps and websites that stopped working this week all used Amazon Web Services. Comprehension quiz
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The word “aether” in this context means:
A: A physical cable running under the ocean.
B: A specific type of DNS error.
C: An invisible or imaginary substance filling the upper regions of space
D: A large data storage centre.
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Which word is the closest synonym for “sabotage”?
A: Accidentally damage
B: Deliberately destroy or obstruct
C: Carefully investigate
D: To financially support
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List three physical threats to the undersea internet cables mentioned in the article.
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What is the effect of the writer mentioning volcanoes and pandemics in the opening paragraph?
A: To show that all disasters, including internet outages, build slowly over time.
B: To argue that we should be more worried about natural disasters than technology.
C: To suggest that volcanoes and pandemics are caused by the internet.
D: To contrast traditional, slow-building disasters with the sudden speed of an internet catastrophe.
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In your own words, summarise the chain of events the article suggests would happen after the digital money disappears, leading to societal collapse.
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In your own words, summarise the two contrasting views the article presents about what a “post-internet world” might be like.
Answers
Tap to reveal
1. C 2. B 3. Any three from: ships’ anchors, trawler nets, undersea natural disasters, sharks, (or deliberate destruction/sabotage). 4. D 5. The power grid (which relies on the internet) would fail, causing a loss of electricity. This would stop fuel pumps from working, meaning transport would stop. Food and goods could not be delivered to supermarkets, leading to stocks drying up, riots, and starvation. 6. The article suggests it could initially seem like a positive liberation , as people might return to reading more and socialising face-to-face. However, it contrasts this with a negative view, stating this freedom would be short-lived because our entire economy depends on the internet. Its collapse would lead to the loss of digital money, power grid failure, a halt to transport, food shortages, and starvation.
1. C 2. B 3. Any three from: ships’ anchors, trawler nets, undersea natural disasters, sharks, (or deliberate destruction/sabotage). 4. D 5. The power grid (which relies on the internet) would fail, causing a loss of electricity. This would stop fuel pumps from working, meaning transport would stop. Food and goods could not be delivered to supermarkets, leading to stocks drying up, riots, and starvation. 6. The article suggests it could initially seem like a positive liberation , as people might return to reading more and socialising face-to-face. However, it contrasts this with a negative view, stating this freedom would be short-lived because our entire economy depends on the internet. Its collapse would lead to the loss of digital money, power grid failure, a halt to transport, food shortages, and starvation.
Glossary
Amazon Web Services - Known as AWS, a part of Amazon which provides computing platforms to other businesses.
Data centre - A building or dedicated space which house computer systems storing and organising large amounts of data.
Virginia - A state on the east coast of the US.
Domain Name System - Often called "the internet's phonebook" — it translates website names (such as theday.co.uk) into machine readable Internet Protocol (IP) addresses. They allow your computer to connect to the right server and load the right webpage.
Server - A computer program or device that provides a service to another computer program and its users.
Aether - Also "ether". The upper regions of air beyond the clouds.
Sabotage - Deliberately ruin, destroy or obstruct something — especially to further your own ambitions.
Stock exchanges - Where investors buy and sell shares in a company, hoping to make money as the company grows. There are major stock exchanges in London, New York, Hong Kong, and Tokyo.
Run on the banks - When lots of people try to take their money out of a bank or banks at the same time, causing banks to run out of cash.
Subsistence agriculture - A farming system in which families grow crops and raise livestock to feed their own family instead of to sell to others.