Final answer:
The World Wide Web was invented in d. 1989 by Tim Berners-Lee. He developed the foundational technologies that enable the web, leading to the rapid growth of the internet and its use by billions of people for a multitude of purposes.
Step-by-step explanation:
The World Wide Web was invented in 1989 by Tim Berners-Lee, a scientist at CERN in Switzerland. The foundational work began with Berners-Lee's proposal in March 1989, and by October 1990, he had developed the three fundamental technologies that support the web: HTML, URI (URL), and HTTP. This invention was critical in creating a network of interlinked hypertext web pages that cultivated the information sharing and connectivity we associate with the internet today.
By the 1990s, with the number of hosts on the internet and the establishment of online service providers like AOL, the infrastructure for widespread web adoption had been set. The commercial internet began to take shape, ultimately allowing more than a billion people by 2005 to use the internet for various purposes including shopping, making phone calls, and creating websites with minimal technical skill.
It's also significant to mention that the development of the Mosaic browser in 1993 greatly contributed to the usability and adoption of the web, leading to the rapid growth of the number of websites. However, the early simplicity and DIY nature of web 1.0 changed over time, particularly after the web transitioned to its next phase, known as Web 2.0.