Tim Berners-Lee may have the smallest fame-to-impact ratio of anyone living. Strangers hardly ever recognize his face; on “Jeopardy!,” his name usually goes for at least sixteen hundred dollars.

Well, it didn't, exactly. As with many inventions, in order to understand how today's Web developed, you have to look farther back than its official introduction. The seeds of the Web were planted ...

Thirty years ago, listeners tuning into Morning Edition heard about a futuristic idea that could profoundly change their lives. "Imagine being able to communicate at-will with 10 million people all ...