On March 13, 1989, software consultant Tim Berners-Lee submitted a document to CERN (the European Organization for Nuclear Research) management outlining how to better keep track of a constant flow of information via the use of a distributed hypertext system. With this seminal proposal, Berners-Lee laid out the founding concept of the connected system of information we know today as the World Wide Web. Although it would be a few years before Netscape popularized the idea of commercial web browsing, the stage had been set back at CERN, as the concept of hypertext documents led to the creation of HTML (HyperText Markup Language), the standard base language still used today to create documents on the Web.

Courtesy of the excellent TED conference where visionary leaders gather to give short inspirational talks, we've embedded a video after the continued link showcasing Berners-Lee's new big idea for the future of the Web, a concept he calls Linked Data. The gist is that http destinations shouldn't be reserved only for documents but for stores of raw data itself, such that even without a fancy presentation layer for each set of data, others around the world can make use of the important information and relationship data generated by governments, enterprises and individuals. The ultimate goal is greater transparency, knowledge sharing, and the dissolution of walled gardens that too often keep information proprietary and inaccessible beyond private silos.

Happy birthday to the web; we can't wait to see what you're up to in another 20 years!
 

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