How Email Changed Writing Forever

An illustrated inventions story from Wonder Inventions — free to read, with narration.

How Email Changed Writing Forever — an illustrated inventions story, set in Global. 10 illustrated pages, free to read on Wonder Inventions.

How Email Changed Writing Forever — book cover — Wonder Inventions
How Email Changed Writing Forever — an illustrated inventions story, set in Global. 10 illustrated pages, free to read on Wonder Inventions.

Page 1

"Solana, can you text Ivana to bring over that new comic book?" Atlas asked, bouncing a basketball in the driveway. Solana, busy drawing with sidewalk chalk…
"Solana, can you text Ivana to bring over that new comic book?" Atlas asked, bouncing a basketball in the driveway. Solana, busy drawing with sidewalk chalk, looked up, frowning. "Texting is so slow!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms up in mock exasperation. Atlas stopped dribbling, his eyebrows furrowed in thought. "But, how did people even communicate before texting and phones and all this stuff?"

"Solana, can you text Ivana to bring over that new comic book?" Atlas asked, bouncing a basketball in the driveway. Solana, busy drawing with sidewalk chalk, looked up, frowning. "Texting is so slow!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms up in mock exasperation. Atlas stopped dribbling, his eyebrows furrowed in thought. "But, how did people even communicate before texting and phones and all this stuff?"

Page 2

Atlas raced inside, Solana hot on his heels, and dashed into his room, a whirlwind of science posters and model rockets.
Atlas raced inside, Solana hot on his heels, and dashed into his room, a whirlwind of science posters and model rockets. He pulled a large, leather-bound book from his shelf — the 'Invention Encyclopedia.' The golden letters on the cover seemed to glow. "This is it!" he declared, flipping it open on his desk, "Time for another adventure!"

Atlas raced inside, Solana hot on his heels, and dashed into his room, a whirlwind of science posters and model rockets. He pulled a large, leather-bound book from his shelf — the 'Invention Encyclopedia.' The golden letters on the cover seemed to glow. "This is it!" he declared, flipping it open on his desk, "Time for another adventure!"

Page 3

A swirl of colors erupted from the pages, enveloping Atlas and Solana! When the colors faded, they found themselves in a bustling office, filled with clattering…
A swirl of colors erupted from the pages, enveloping Atlas and Solana! When the colors faded, they found themselves in a bustling office, filled with clattering typewriters and overflowing ashtrays. "Wow, this is so old!" Solana exclaimed, coughing in the smoky air. Atlas held his nose. "As Charles Darwin said, 'It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives.

A swirl of colors erupted from the pages, enveloping Atlas and Solana! When the colors faded, they found themselves in a bustling office, filled with clattering typewriters and overflowing ashtrays. "Wow, this is so old!" Solana exclaimed, coughing in the smoky air. Atlas held his nose. "As Charles Darwin said, 'It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change.' I guess this is what the world used to look like, before email changed everything!"

Page 4

A man with thick glasses and a neatly combed hairstyle looked up from his desk. "Can I help you, children?" he asked, his voice laced with curiosity.
A man with thick glasses and a neatly combed hairstyle looked up from his desk. "Can I help you, children?" he asked, his voice laced with curiosity. Atlas grinned. "We're here to learn about...email!" he said, holding up his notebook. The man chuckled. "Email? Young man, that hasn't been invented yet! I'm Ray Tomlinson, and I work here at Bolt, Beranek and Newman. Right now, we're sending messages back and forth on ARPANET, but it's nothing like what you're imagining!"

A man with thick glasses and a neatly combed hairstyle looked up from his desk. "Can I help you, children?" he asked, his voice laced with curiosity. Atlas grinned. "We're here to learn about...email!" he said, holding up his notebook. The man chuckled. "Email? Young man, that hasn't been invented yet! I'm Ray Tomlinson, and I work here at Bolt, Beranek and Newman. Right now, we're sending messages back and forth on ARPANET, but it's nothing like what you're imagining!"

Page 5

"ARPANET?" Solana asked, tilting her head. Ray chuckled, gesturing to a large, room-sized computer. "It's the precursor to the Internet!
"ARPANET?" Solana asked, tilting her head. Ray chuckled, gesturing to a large, room-sized computer. "It's the precursor to the Internet! We can send simple text messages between computers, but there's no easy way to address them to specific people," he explained, tapping on the keyboard. "Right now, if I want to send a message to someone at another computer, I have to know their login name on that specific computer."

"ARPANET?" Solana asked, tilting her head. Ray chuckled, gesturing to a large, room-sized computer. "It's the precursor to the Internet! We can send simple text messages between computers, but there's no easy way to address them to specific people," he explained, tapping on the keyboard. "Right now, if I want to send a message to someone at another computer, I have to know their login name on that specific computer."

Page 6

Atlas scribbled furiously in his notebook. "So, it's like sending a letter, but instead of writing a name, you have to write a computer's secret code?" he…
Atlas scribbled furiously in his notebook. "So, it's like sending a letter, but instead of writing a name, you have to write a computer's secret code?" he asked. Ray nodded. "Exactly! It's clunky. I've been trying to find a way to make it simpler. I need a symbol that's not commonly used in names to separate the username from the computer name."

Atlas scribbled furiously in his notebook. "So, it's like sending a letter, but instead of writing a name, you have to write a computer's secret code?" he asked. Ray nodded. "Exactly! It's clunky. I've been trying to find a way to make it simpler. I need a symbol that's not commonly used in names to separate the username from the computer name."

Page 7

"A symbol..." Solana mused, tapping her chin. Her eyes widened. "What about the @ symbol? It stands for 'at'! You could write 'Atlas @ computer' to mean 'Atlas…
"A symbol..." Solana mused, tapping her chin. Her eyes widened. "What about the @ symbol? It stands for 'at'! You could write 'Atlas @ computer' to mean 'Atlas at that computer'!" Ray's eyes lit up. "That's it! Brilliant! It's perfect! Short, simple, and rarely used! I'm going to try it right now!" he exclaimed, turning back to the computer.

"A symbol..." Solana mused, tapping her chin. Her eyes widened. "What about the @ symbol? It stands for 'at'! You could write 'Atlas @ computer' to mean 'Atlas at that computer'!" Ray's eyes lit up. "That's it! Brilliant! It's perfect! Short, simple, and rarely used! I'm going to try it right now!" he exclaimed, turning back to the computer.

Page 8

Moments later, Ray grinned. "It worked! I sent a message to myself on another computer using the @ symbol!" he announced triumphantly.
Moments later, Ray grinned. "It worked! I sent a message to myself on another computer using the @ symbol!" he announced triumphantly. "This could revolutionize how we communicate! Think about it – instant messages to anyone, anywhere on the network!" Atlas pumped his fist in the air. "And it all started with the @ symbol!" he cheered. He pointed to his notebook: "Remember what you said about needing to know their login name? The @ symbol fixed that!"

Moments later, Ray grinned. "It worked! I sent a message to myself on another computer using the @ symbol!" he announced triumphantly. "This could revolutionize how we communicate! Think about it – instant messages to anyone, anywhere on the network!" Atlas pumped his fist in the air. "And it all started with the @ symbol!" he cheered. He pointed to his notebook: "Remember what you said about needing to know their login name? The @ symbol fixed that!"

Page 9

Suddenly, the colors swirled around them again. Atlas and Solana were back in Atlas's room, the Invention Encyclopedia closed on the desk. "Wow!" Solana gasped.
Suddenly, the colors swirled around them again. Atlas and Solana were back in Atlas's room, the Invention Encyclopedia closed on the desk. "Wow!" Solana gasped. "Email really did change everything!" Atlas grabbed his phone and began typing a message. "It sure did! Now, let's text Ivana to get that comic book over here!"

Suddenly, the colors swirled around them again. Atlas and Solana were back in Atlas's room, the Invention Encyclopedia closed on the desk. "Wow!" Solana gasped. "Email really did change everything!" Atlas grabbed his phone and began typing a message. "It sure did! Now, let's text Ivana to get that comic book over here!"

Page 10

"You know," Atlas said, looking up from his phone, "Today, over 300 billion emails are sent every single day! That's a lot of @ symbols!" He smiled.
"You know," Atlas said, looking up from his phone, "Today, over 300 billion emails are sent every single day! That's a lot of @ symbols!" He smiled. "Imagine how many messages Ray Tomlinson never knew would travel through his simple invention." Solana laughed. "Ivana says she's on her way!" Now that's some amazing tech!

"You know," Atlas said, looking up from his phone, "Today, over 300 billion emails are sent every single day! That's a lot of @ symbols!" He smiled. "Imagine how many messages Ray Tomlinson never knew would travel through his simple invention." Solana laughed. "Ivana says she's on her way!" Now that's some amazing tech!

About this story

  • Location: Global
  • Audience: kids (ages 6–12)

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