Emergent Properties, Human Rights, and the Internet

The Internet is an artifact, but its uses represent emergent properties of large numbers of users discovering ways in which to interact and share information that couldn't necessarily have been predicted from the basic Internet design. The net has become a vital part of our society, but whether access to it should be a "human right" is controversial. There can be no question, however, that it has become a critical tool for research, business, education, government, and social interaction.