Final answer:
The first network was created by the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) of the United States Department of Defense. ARPA developed ARPANET in the late 1960s, which later evolved into the Internet following the standardization of communication protocols in 1982.
Step-by-step explanation:
The first network was created in the late 1960s by the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA), which later became the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). It was a part of the United States Department of Defense. ARPA developed ARPANET as a way to allow government facilities and research universities to communicate on a network dedicated to official communications. As the network expanded, it laid the foundation for the future Internet, which saw significant growth and development following the standardization of communication protocols in 1982.
It's important to note that ARPANET was not intended for commercial or political communications, those were strictly forbidden; instead, it was for official use and research purposes, although occasional personal communication using email was permitted. This pioneering work by ARPA in conjunction with research institutions defined the early stages of computer networking long before the rise of the public Internet and the World Wide Web.