Although Customs and Border Protection analyzes cargo and other information to target specific shipments for closer inspection, it still physically inspects only a small fraction of the containers under its purview.

These sites have torn down the geographical divide that once prevented long distance social relationships from forming, allowing instant communication and connections to take place and a virtual second life to take hold for its users.

The Internet has brought communities across the globe closer together through instant communication.

Back then, the excise tax was designed to be a luxury tax for people who owned telephones.

I've never sent an email in my life. My kids laugh. I often hand the phone to them and say, 'Can you text this message to somebody.' I don't even have a computer on my desk.

The Internet has introduced me to some of my closest friends.

I'm addicted to email, but other than that, there are practical things - being able to buy a book on the internet that you can't find in your local bookshop. This could be a lifeline if you live further from the sources.

Fortunately I can say that social media has treated me pretty well. I've been exempt from a lot of the mean comments.