The internet earns a nomination for 2010 Nobel Prize
By Vlad Savov 
posted March 11th 2010 5:54AM
posted March 11th 2010 5:54AM
Isn't Italy a place of contrast? After the country's judiciary slammed Google for failing to keep a tight enough leash on user-uploaded content, we're now hearing that its local version of Wired magazine is putting forward the internet as a candidate for the Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of its contributions to "helping advance dialogue, debate and consensus." Right then. Just in case you think this is all a bit silly -- and you should -- we're also hearing Nicholas Negroponte and 2003 Nobel laureate Shirin Ebadi are both in support of the idea, which has been described as "a Nobel for each and every one of us" by Internet for Peace, an organization set up specifically to promote the web's candidacy. That's a pretty succinct way of putting it, but it also shows what's wrong with the idea: nothing devalues a prize's worth and meaning quite like handing it out to everyone. Just imagine icanhascheezburger.com slapping a legitimate Nobel laureate badge up on its homepage and you'll know what we mean.
Nobel lost the true meaning long time ago. It's all BS to me and I am sure I am not the only one that think so.
- We are Borgs. Resistance is futile.
Medals for all the ROFL CATS!
Caption idea for that picture of this headline:
"iz in your internet, winning your medalz!"
4chan?
...lol.
@skyblaze bout time someone mentioned it
BS
Get off your high horse Vladislav Savov, I'm sure icanhascheezburger.com has contributed more towards world peace than you'll ever do.
@mlashcorp Probably true. But nobody said I deserve a medal for contributions to world peace either. You're really comparing 'puny' with 'tiny', whereas the award's supposed to be about 'significant.'
@Vlad Savov
So, because the internet has content you deem unworthy, you consider it's contribution to human interaction tiny ... well done.
Good point about giving the award for HOPEing something great would be done. I think the really devalued the "Peace" prize when they awarded it to someone whose life was devoted to murder and terrorism - Arafat.
@Phredd You mean those war criminals: SHIMON PERES ,
YITZHAK RABIN and
MENACHEM BEGIN?
icanhascheeseburger.com does deserve a nobel peace prize! The web would be a darker place without it
@DiGiC I can haz nobel prize?
Shouldn't the Nobel Prize go to Al Gore instead? Cause he invented the thing ...
Let's see, there's about 1733993741 internet users (in 2009). Nobel prize in 2009 was US$1.4 million... If my math is correct each of us will get a wooping 0.09 cents!!!
I'm starting to think there's some kind of toxic gas leaking from Vesuvius lately, making people in Italia a little bit crazy :)
@Bratan The prize would be won by the inventors of the Internet, so inform you before writing comments.
Internet is for porn. Oh, wait, I get it.
@dank414 Yea I'm surprised how people ignore that one factoid about the internet. When it first started up in the 90s, the 2 largest search items were Star Trek and porn. Well today, I'm pretty sure Star Trek isn't as popular anymore, but the latter is. So if Nobel awards the "Internet" the Nobel Peace Prize, they have to recognize how porn is a huge part of the internet's popularity and perhaps deserving of recognition for bringing peace to our world through man's vices.
I'm rather surprised at this one guys, why so much hate?
think for a minute about where you're posting on this from, and then thing about where in the world the post above or below you is posting from.
the internet has connected humanity in a way never accomplished before, and sure there are its dark sides, but 4chan had nothing to do with what happened in iran after the last election.
the internet is clearly humankind's greatest invention, maybe you guys and gals, including engadget's Vladislav Savov, should read the wired article before mocking the idea: http://www.wired.com/underwire/2009/11/internet-for-peace-nobel/
it's a shame people on this site are so jaded, the glass is half full guys and gals.
http://www.internetforpeace.org/manifesto.cfm
@xigageshi
"The internet has connected humanity in a way never accomplished before." Right...and through that connection all the evils of the human psyche were allowed to pool together in the thing we now call the internet.
Sure the internet has done a lot of good, but even with that, the internet still hasn't contributed anything to the world peace where it deserves a Nobel Peace Prize.
In Alfred Nobel's will ( the creator of the peace prize), he stated that the Nobel Peace Prize should be awarded to the person that "...have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses." How exactly does the internet fit anywhere in that description. This is completely lame nomination made by people who obviously don't understand what the Peace Prize is for.
Who gets the money
if you do this, remember you're giving al 'the douche' gore a nobel prize, because he claims he invented the internet ug.
@AM321CAN: Perhaps you should look into what Vint Cerf and Bob Kahn had to say about Al Gore's role as regards the creation of the internet.
You do know who they are, right?
Actually, the internet's architecture is similar to a neural network. Maybe it's alive and it just doesn't have any effective motor output. Google et al are giving it senses (input) with image recognition and text searching algorithms. Now all we need to do is hook up a nuclear missile silo to the LAN, and wait for the intertoobs to get angry ... or maybe that would be a bowel movement. Depends on where we hook it up, I suppose.
What im more interested in is: who gets the money?
:-)
This is madness, the same madness that led to Time magazine to recognized "you" as person of the year. As regarding to the Italian court ruling on Google executive, the reason these executive is are found guilty is because they have fail to removed the video when the parent ask them to remove it (two month before the court order); only after the Italian court told them to remove the video, did they remove it
Following on from the great success we had as Time magazine's Person of the Year!
awwwww.... kitten is sooo cute. you should give a kitten to every person on this planet. We'll be melted by it's cuteness and cuddliness to forget all about waging war.
For those of us who remember the time before the internet, we can definitely say it does more good than bad. That said, this award is supposed to be given to a person who represents what it means to struggle for peace and the betterment of the world around them. I really don't think the internet qualifies for that and I'm sure you wouldn't have to look very far to find a person or group more worthy of this award.
It's a cool idea to nominate it but it would be bad for the award's image and would besmirch the names of former greats who won it, such as Martin Luther King Jr, Mother Theresa, Ghandi, etc etc etc......
Sorry if my facts or spelling are a little off, I'm not getting paid to do this so it isn't worth my time to research every detail.
Yee in Italy we luv teh internetz, they geev us wine so we can get durnck and wreet thees theengs all round thoose stoopid blogz
And who is going to go on stage and accept the award on behalf of the internet? Al Gore?
I remember one night inventing a flying cheeseburger with wings that could feed the world. Nomination anyone ?
There is no way for you to know whether something receives a nomination for Nobel Prize unless 50 years have elapsed. In other words, the official list would be released in 2060, whether internet received a true nomination or not.
The internet for the win! Now, remember who won in 1994? . www.facebook.com/pax101 if you want the answer.