What Internet Users Know about Technology and the Web

American Internet users’ knowledge of the modern technology landscape varies widely across a range of topics, according to a new knowledge quiz conducted by the Pew Research Center as part of its ongoing series commemorating the 25th anniversary of the World Wide Web.

The survey -- which was conducted among a nationally representative sample of 1,066 internet users -- includes 17 questions on a range of issues related to technology, including: the meaning and usage of common online terms; recognition of famous tech figures; the history of some major technological advances; and the underlying structure of the Internet and other technologies. Substantial majorities of internet users are able to correctly answer questions about some common technology platforms and everyday Internet usage terms. But relatively few Internet users are familiar with certain concepts that underpin the Internet and other modern technological advances. Only one third (34%) know that Moore’s Law relates to how many transistors can be put on a microchip, and just 23% are aware that “the Internet” and “the World Wide Web” do not, in fact, refer to the same thing.