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Teenagers on the Greatest Gifts Their Parents Have Given Them

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Teenagers on the Greatest Gifts Their Parents Have Given Them

As a kid I was always so excited to receive gifts, and the idea of receiving a gift uplifted my spirit to the highest. A gift I received from my parents during my 9th birthday was a sketchbook, and little did I know from this gift would arise a new persona in me. I always knew I had some creative talent but never knew the true extent of it till I received this gift. This sketchbook itself created a new part of my identity: an artist. I learned I had a capability to draw, although not learned over night, the practices and persistent drawings in my sketchbook created me to the artists I am today. I thank my parents for allowing me to acknowledge this gift I had, which makes their present so much more than just a gift: they created a new part of my identity.

— Hadassah, Glenbard West High School

The greatest gift my parents have given me is independence. Among the many values and life lessons they have bestowed upon me, the ability to be self-reliant and confident in my own abilities stands out. They encouraged me to take responsibility for my actions from a young age and fostered an environment that allowed me to learn and grow independently. My father played a significant role in instilling independence in me. He taught me practical skills such as problem-solving, decision-making, and self-sufficiency. Whether it was calling the hotel phone to ask for a toothbrush during our travels, building my own IKEA furniture, cooking for guests, or even allowing me to build my own wardrobe, my father empowered me to take charge of various aspects of my life. By allowing me to tackle challenges on my own and providing guidance when needed, my parents helped me develop a sense of confidence in my abilities. They taught me to trust myself and believe that I have the capability to overcome obstacles. This gift of independence has been invaluable in preparing me for the transition to adulthood and has given me the courage to embrace new experiences and responsibilities.

— Tanirika, New Jersey

My parents were born and raised in Algeria for the first 24 or so years of their lives. Everything they knew, their family, friends, and home, was there. When I was born, they had to make a sacrifice. It was either we stayed there, not poor but not having enough to give me the “lavish life” they wanted me to have, or we left. To the land of opportunity, the U.S. Think about it, having to travel 5,562 miles away from all you loved, just for a child. I could never be more grateful for my parents. Without argument, no doubts in their minds, they decided that they would automatically leave Algeria to move for me. Truly, they are the best thing that has ever happened to me. I’d never be able to thank them for leaving their family to give me a better life. My parents didn’t give me a trip to Nashville, or a soccer game. They have given me love, support, and a life that they never got to have.

— LIna, J.R Masterman Philadelphia Pa

What is the greatest gift my parents have given me? If I had to think long and hard, I would say giving me an opportunity to live in a well-developed country. My parents didn’t have much in my home country because of the low-paying jobs. Although we had all we needed, my parents decided it wasn’t good for us to experience life in a poor country. As a result of this, they decided it was best for us to move to the United States. They spent long, hard-working days saving money for a one-way ticket to America. They did this for my brother and me so that we could live our best lives.

— Mario, Masterman School, Philadelphia, PA

The greatest gift I’ve ever received from my parents was themselves. The appreciation they deserve is unparalleled when you see “families” with absent adults. My mom — sacrificing her life — escaped her home country after a war, risking her life, to have better opportunities. My parents were foreigners and had to learn everything new in America. Despite their struggles, never once have I been forgotten or neglected. While not receiving tickets to a soccer game, I am still spoiled, cared for, and loved for. I have been their greatest gift, and they are my favorite gift.

— Justin, Masterman School, Philadelphia, PA

Film Club: ‘A Day With a Dishwasher at a Top NYC Restaurant’

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Film Club: ‘A Day With a Dishwasher at a Top NYC Restaurant’

“A Day With a Dishwasher at a Top NYC Restaurant” is an 18-minute film from the New York Times Cooking series, “On the Job With Priya Krishna.” In this episode, Priya follows Drevon Alston as he hustles through his workday, managing the dish pit at one of the oldest restaurants in Brooklyn. While cooks furiously arrange oysters and clams on seafood platters and baste steaks with butter, Mr. Alston and his fellow dishwashers scrub pots, scrape char off grill grates and run stacks of plates up and down the stairs.

What did you learn from Mr. Alston’s busy day? What does the film reveal about the people who shape what we eat and how we eat — and whose jobs often go unseen?

Students

1. Watch the short film above. While you watch, you might take notes using our Film Club Double-Entry Journal (PDF) to help you remember specific moments.

2. After watching, think about these questions:

  • What questions do you still have?

  • What connections can you make between this film and your own life or experience? Why? Does this film remind you of anything else you’ve read or seen? If so, how and why?

3. An additional challenge | Respond to the essential question at the top of this post: What are the unsung jobs that make the world a better — and tastier — place?

4. Next, join the conversation by clicking on the comment button and posting in the box that opens on the right. (Students 13 and older are invited to comment, although teachers of younger students are welcome to post what their students have to say.)

5. After you have posted, try reading back to see what others have said, then respond to someone else by posting another comment. Use the “Reply” button or the @ symbol to address that student directly.

Want more student-friendly videos? Visit our Film Club column.

Students 13 and older in the United States and Britain, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public.

What Eliminating Noncompete Clauses Means for Tech Job Seekers

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What Eliminating Noncompete Clauses Means for Tech Job Seekers

It’s officially time to sunset the noncompete clause that’s become a standard fixture of tech employment contracts. On Tuesday, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) put out a new rule that bans noncompetes nationwide. This rule, which could go into effect in four months, gives workers more freedom to switch jobs, encourages the pursuit of new ideas, and supports the creation of new businesses. 

An estimated one in five U.S. workers are bound by noncompete restrictions, and they tend to be common in the tech industry, specifically in engineering, computer, and math roles. For tech companies, noncompete agreements are a way that organizations protect their intellectual property, like proprietary technology, software, designs, algorithms, or patents. Noncompete agreements specify that employees won’t leave their job to work for a competitor or start a competing business. 

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But, as this new rule outlines, noncompete agreements only stifle innovation and hurt workers’ career growth and earning potential. “Noncompete clauses keep wages low, suppress new ideas, and rob the American economy of dynamism, including from the more than 8,500 new startups that would be created a year once noncompetes are banned,” FTC Chair Lina M. Khan said in a statement.  

So, what’s all this mean for someone who’s working in a tech role with a noncompete clause? Or folks who are upskilling in hopes that they can get a better position? Ahead, we’ll break down the news and what it means for the tech industry at large.  

What are noncompete agreements? 

There’s typically a noncompete clause in the employment contract that you sign when you start a job. The exact language in the clause can vary, but a noncompete essentially prohibits you from “competing” with your employer while you’re employed and even a year after you leave a company (whether you quit, left involuntarily, or got laid off). Competing in this case means working for a company that’s considered a competitor because they develop and offer the same type of services as your employer. In some cases, noncompete clauses are broad enough that they prevent you from working in the same industry altogether.  

For example, say you’re working for a fintech app and come across an open role at another fintech org that seems like a perfect fit for your skillset and expertise. It’s exactly what you’re looking for in a new role, and better yet, the salary is higher than your current one. If you signed a noncompete when you got your current job, that clause could technically disqualify you from moving to the new fintech job.  

Whether noncompete agreements are legally binding or enforced depends on where you are. Some states like California, Minnesota, North Dakota, and Oklahoma had already done away with noncompete agreements. And in states like Washington, Oregon, and Illinois, they’re prohibited specifically for lower-paid workers. The new FTC rule doesn’t apply to Senior Executives, workers earning more than $151,164 who are in a “policy-making position.” 

What does banning noncompetes mean for tech workers? 

This ban gives people leverage to change jobs on their own accord, which might not sound like much at first glance, but is an upshot. Being able to freely change jobs means you can accept a higher-paying position, leave a toxic work environment, or finally make your startup idea a reality. Ultimately, it gives workers more options to seek out work that aligns with their goals, skills, and beliefs, rather than being tied down to a specific company or organization.  

If workers are more empowered to change jobs, it could also mean that companies will have to work harder to retain the employees they already have, according to Andy Wu, Assistant Professor at Harvard Business School who researches how tech companies build competitive advantage. For example, employers might have to compromise on perks they know matter to employees, like hybrid work models, he said in an interview with Harvard Business School. 

If you agreed to a noncompete at your current job, your employer is required to notify you that the noncompete is no longer in effect or enforceable, according to the FTC. Can’t remember if you signed a noncompete? You might want to dig up your employment contract or ask your People Ops team for a copy.  

How does this affect the technical job market? 

For job seekers, this ban means you have more options. You can go after a job at a competitor without being asked to enter a noncompete agreement. With a wider range of opportunities, you stand to earn more money: The FTC predicts that workers’ earnings will rise an estimated $524 a year on average.  

You might start seeing more startups launching, because people who were previously hindered by a noncompete have the green light to start their own business. With this rule, new business formation will grow by 2.7%, creating over 8,500 new businesses each year, according to the FTC. We could also see measurable increases in innovation, with an average estimated increase of 17,000 to 29,000 more patents each year over the next decade. 

There’s enough to stress about when you’re looking for a job, especially in the competitive labor market right now. Hopefully this cultural shift helps job seekers like you get hired and do impactful work. If you’re looking for more tips for finding a job, check out these blogs about how to look for a job when you already have one and how to change careers without changing companies. Or reflect on what to do when you feel stagnant at work and want to make a change. And as you’re going through the application process, don’t forget to try our AI-driven career prep resources like the Interview Simulator and job-readiness checker. 

When you land your next gig, we want to hear about it! Share your story here and you could be featured in an upcoming blog. 

What Everyday Object Deserves More Love?

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What Everyday Object Deserves More Love?

The clouds above us. The sidewalks below us. The stop signs on nearly every corner that quietly prevent countless traffic accidents. The many forks and knives that help us eat our daily meals.

What objects all around us — man-made or in nature — do you think we take for granted and deserve more attention and appreciation?

How about sticks?

Yes, sticks — long or short, knobby or smooth. Do these ubiquitous fallen bits of branches merit more love? In “Sticks. And the People Who Love Them,” Steven Kurutz writes about a newly popular Instagram account devoted to — you guessed it — sticks:

Stick Nation was born last summer, during a hiking trip to Arches National Park in Utah.

Boone Hogg, Logan Jugler and some friends were cracking jokes as they trekked toward Delicate Arch. From their free-associative silliness came the notion of reviewing a stick as you might a sculpture or valuable antique.

Later, Mr. Hogg, 30, took out his phone and shot some video of Mr. Jugler, also 30, as he mused on the qualities of a stick he had picked up from the ground. It seemed to be more interesting than the sticks nearby — it had the approximate shape of a handgun, for one thing — and Mr. Jugler found that, to his surprise, he had plenty to say about it.

“It was really weathered and worn, and felt great in the hand,” Mr. Jugler recalled. “There was a nice trigger spot for your finger. I think I gave it a 7 out of 10.”

In any other era, the idea of weighing in on the aesthetic qualities of sticks might have been left behind in the wilderness like stray bits of gorp. Instead, Mr. Hogg and Mr. Jugler created Official Stick Reviews on Instagram.

The account, which bills itself as “the internet’s go-to for stick reviews,” quickly attracted 40,000 followers, many of whom offer commentary on the sticks under discussion. They also submit photos or videos of the specimens they have come across for possible review.

The article continues:

What started as a wilderness jest has by now morphed into something slightly less tongue-in-cheek. The act of finding, handling and appreciating a good stick seems to speak to one’s inner 5-year-old.

“Sometimes it’s a bit, with people leaning into the internet-ness of it,” Mr. Hogg said. “But a lot of time it’s a sincere thing that people are connecting with. They’re appreciating something as basic as a stick.”

In the more than six months since they started Official Stick Reviews, Mr. Hogg, who works in marketing, and Mr. Jugler, a physician assistant, said they have been surprised to encounter so many hobbyists who are passionate about fallen bits of branch and the like. One commenter shared that he inherited his mother’s treasured stick after she died.

Students, read the entire article and then tell us:

  • What everyday object deserves more love? Tell us why you think it is overlooked and why we should treasure it more.

  • What’s your reaction to the Instagram account created by Boone Hogg and Logan Jugler? Why do you think their Official Stick Reviews has gone from a tongue-in-cheek gag to “a sincere thing that people are connecting with”? How do sticks “speak to one’s inner 5-year-old”?

  • When was the last time you played with a stick, or even stopped to notice one? Did you ever? Does the article make you appreciate sticks more?

  • If you are inspired, find a stick and submit a review of it, “as you might a sculpture or valuable antique,” to Mr. Hogg and Mr. Jugler’s account.

  • If you could create your own Instagram or social media account for an overlooked object, what would it be and why? Do you think people would want to follow it?

Students 13 and older in the United States and Britain, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public and may appear in print.

Find more Student Opinion questions here. Teachers, check out this guide to learn how you can incorporate these prompts into your classroom.

Help

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Help

Use your imagination to write the opening of a short story or poem inspired by this photo, or write about a memory from your own life that this image makes you think of.

Tell us in the comments, then read this article to learn more about the related true story.

Students 13 and older in the United States and Britain, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public and may appear in print.

Find more Picture Prompts here.

Word of the Day: propound

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Word of the Day: propound

The word propound has appeared in five articles on NYTimes.com in the past year, including on April 3 in “A Gender Theorist Who Just Wants Everyone to Get Along” by Jennifer Szalai:

Despite its notoriously opaque prose, Butler’s best-known book, “Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity” (1990), has been both credited and blamed for popularizing a multitude of ideas, including some that Butler doesn’t propound, like the notions that biology is entirely unreal and that everybody experiences gender as a choice.

So Butler set out to clarify a few things with “Who’s Afraid of Gender?,” a new book that arrives at a time when gender has “become a matter of extraordinary alarm.” In plain (if occasionally plodding) English, Butler, who uses they/them pronouns, repeatedly affirms that facts do exist, that biology does exist, that plenty of people undoubtedly experience their own gender as “immutable.”
What Butler questions instead is how such facts get framed, and how such framing structures our societies and how we live.

Can you correctly use the word propound in a sentence?

Based on the definition and example provided, write a sentence using today’s Word of the Day and share it as a comment on this article. It is most important that your sentence makes sense and demonstrates that you understand the word’s definition, but we also encourage you to be creative and have fun.

If you want a better idea of how propound can be used in a sentence, read these usage examples on Vocabulary.com. You can also visit this guide to learn how to use IPA symbols to show how different words are pronounced.

If you enjoy this daily challenge, try our vocabulary quizzes.

Students ages 13 and older in the United States and the United Kingdom, and 16 and older elsewhere, can comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff.

The Word of the Day is provided by Vocabulary.com. Learn more and see usage examples across a range of subjects in the Vocabulary.com Dictionary. See every Word of the Day in this column.

What is Selenium?

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What is Selenium?

Automation is quickly transforming tasks of all sizes, from setting up your calendar to generating marketing leads and driving cars. With Selenium, testing software in web browsers can be automated too.

“Browser automation” refers to using automated solutions to test software in web browsers. Tools like Selenium streamline testing efforts by automating the actions websites would perform during testing, so you can get results faster and ensure consistent user experiences across platforms.

Selenium is an open-source suite of tools and coding libraries that you can use to automate nearly anything that can be done within a web browser. Selenium also provides you with an interface to write scripts to test web-based programs. Ahead, we’ll go over what Selenium is used for and the different kinds of Selenium tools that are available.

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What is Selenium used for?

Selenium is used to test web applications to see how they behave in different browsers. Here are a few capabilities that make Selenium special:

  • It works with many different coding languages, such as Java, Ruby, C#, Perl, Python, and PHP
  • It’s free
  • It’s open-source, so anyone can contribute to the project
  • It works on Windows, Mac, and Linux operating systems

A developer would use Selenium to test out how an application they’re working on functions in different web browsers and on different operating systems.

For example, suppose you’ve developed a web app that allows users within a company to chat with each other. These users tend to use either Chrome or Firefox when they access the internet. Your web application has the following attributes that need to be tested:

  • A word processor that people use to input ideas
  • A messaging feature that allows people to send both messages and documents to each other
  • An image editor that lets users adjust pictures and various image files without leaving the application

You could use Selenium to automatically test each of these functions — and more — to see how your app performs in different browsers.

Now let’s say that while testing the app’s image editor, you noticed that it wasn’t able to resize images beyond a certain range. You need that functionality, but you’re not sure exactly how big you want users to be able to make images before the expansion feature no longer works.

Without an automated testing platform like Selenium, you might have to re-write the code, then open the app on several different browsers, manually upload images of different resolutions, try to resize each one by hand, and then repeat the process every time you alter your code. With Selenium, you can simply change your code, hit a button, and see how the app performs on all the browsers you want to test it on.

Selenium tools

Here’s an overview of some of the tools in Selenium’s suite and what you can do with them.

Selenium WebDriver

Selenium WebDriver allows you to make regression automation tests and suites that work within your browser. You can also use it to automate web scraping and distribute and scale scripts in a variety of environments.

Selenium IDE

Selenium IDE enables you to make quick scripts that reproduce bugs and make exploratory testing, when you test your software on the fly instead of creating your tests in advance, easier. You can use Selenium IDE within Edge, Chrome, and Firefox as an add-on while you test how applications behave in those browsers.

Selenium Grid

Selenium Grid allows you to scale your testing environment and system by running multiple tests on several different computers at the same time. You control your testing environments from a central location. In this way, you can run a variety of tests on different kinds of computers using different browsers — all at the same time.

Selenium client API

This is a tool that allows users to perform tests in different programming languages, so users who are comfortable with certain languages can run tests without stepping out of their comfort zone.

The benefits of Selenium

Selenium makes it easier to:

  • Test code changes
  • Find bugs
  • Envision the end-user’s experience with your application
  • Try new iterations of certain elements of your app before committing to them

Selenium can also be a big help if you’re trying to implement an Agile development environment. Since testing can be automated, you can do it as you go along, and make adjustments to different elements of the application. All of this happens in less time, which means it’s also budget friendly.

Learn more about web development

Selenium is a powerful tool that makes it easier to ensure your web apps run properly on different devices. If you want to learn more about how web apps are created and tested, check out our web development courses.

What is a Checksum?

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What is a Checksum?

If you download an app from the internet, how do you know it’s what it claims to be? Say you find a copy of an e-book or game in an online marketplace and you want to download it. How do you know your download is the intended media, and not a corrupted program stuffed with malware?

This is where checksums often come into play. The term “checksum” refers to a sequence of letters and numbers that you can use to safeguard against data errors (also known as a “hash”). Checksums are often used in scenarios where data integrity is crucial because they allow you to verify a file’s hash against the original.

Checksums help you ensure that files you’ve downloaded are legitimate, complete, and uncorrupted. As a developer, you should know when and how to implement checksum algorithms in the applications you build. Ahead, we’ll take a closer look at checksums, their use, and ways to calculate them.

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How checksum programs work

A checksum is a sequence of letters and numbers that you use to check a file’s validity and integrity. Checksum programs work by running a file through an algorithm that uses aspects of the file to produce the checksum value.

The algorithms used to produce checksums include:

Each algorithm has its pros and cons, but the best one to use depends on your specific use case.

How algorithms render checksums

Algorithms use cryptographic hash functions, which are formulas that take an input and output a bunch of letters and numbers. Because the algorithm is relatively complicated, very miniscule differences in two files that are otherwise essentially the same can produce vastly different checksums.

The algorithm analyzes the contents of a file, and each element of the file becomes an input. Because each file contains so many different elements, it’s highly unlikely for two different files to produce the same checksum.

Checksums are standardized, so each file’s checksum contains the same number of digits, and it’s impossible to derive the original file using just the checksum.

For instance, using an online checksum tool, we can upload a file with this blog post, and it’ll produce the following checksum:

4f404820274682dcd6f66290c78b239b

And a document with only the word “the” in it produces this checksum:

fef6e7bcb47ab0764178d7f30e5f5bec

Now, let’s add a period to this article and see how that changes the checksum. The original checksum for this article was this:

4f404820274682dcd6f66290c78b239b

With only a period added, the checksum for “the” becomes this:

5ee798757e220c1a5b9702b37cd4d611

These were produced using the MD5 checksum algorithm. But different algorithms would produce different checksums for the same file.

How checksums are used

Because checksums can pick up even very minor variations in a file, they have many uses. While the average person might not encounter checksums in their day-to-day activities, they come up a lot in instances like:

  • Checking whether an internet connection was interrupted while transmitting an important file.
  • Analyzing data to identify hard drive problems that could have corrupted it.
  • Checking a hard disk, thumb drive, or another external disk to see if it has been corrupted.
  • Analyzing data being delivered to a recipient to see if a third-party had intercepted, corrupted, or manipulated it.
  • Checking for malware installed within a presumably trustworthy file.

Example of how to use a checksum algorithm

Say you have to download a new version of a game from a site claiming to be the original provider. The site also gives you the checksum of the file. You download the file, and it takes several minutes because it’s huge. Your internet connection seems a little slower than usual, so you walk away for a few minutes while the file finishes downloading.

When you come back, it looks like the download was successful. You then open the file and install the new version of your game. Right away, something doesn’t seem right. Even though the game opens, the user interface lags, and some visual elements seem corrupted.

In this case, you could use a checksum algorithm to check whether there’s a problem with the file. The algorithm used to generate the checksum on the provider’s site will most likely be specified, so all you have to do is copy the checksum and find a checksum generator that uses the same algorithm.

You load the original file you downloaded from the provider’s site, find the algorithm the provider used, and enter the file into the checksum generator. At this point, one of two things will happen:

  • The checksums match. This could mean one of the following:
    • The provider has been making a corrupted file available to customers, which is unlikely.
    • The problem is on your end; your computer isn’t executing the file properly.
    • Your computer made a mistake while installing the game.
  • The checksums do not match. This means:
    • You had a poor internet connection, and something got lost during the download.
    • Your connection wasn’t secure, and a hacker interrupted your transmission and altered the contents of the file using a man-in-the-middle attack.
    • You made a mistake when choosing which file to input into the checksum algorithm, perhaps putting in one that you had already altered in some way.

Where are checksums used?

Checksums are useful when ensuring the quality of downloads and analyzing data for evidence of a cyber-attack. If you want to learn more about algorithms and how they’re generated and used, check out our free course Java: Algorithms. You can also gain a solid understanding of algorithms with Learn Data Structures and Algorithms with Python.

What’s Going On in This Graph? | May 1, 2024

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What’s Going On in This Graph? | May 1, 2024

On Wednesday, May 1, teachers from our collaborator, the American Statistical Association, will facilitate this discussion from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Eastern time.

5. By Friday morning, May 3, we will reveal more information about the graph, including a free link to the article that includes this graph, at the bottom of this post. We encourage you to post additional comments based on the article, possibly using statistical terms defined in the Stat Nuggets.

We’ll post more information here on the afternoon of Thursday, May 2. Stay tuned!

More?

• See all graphs in this series or collections of 75 of our favorite graphs, 28 graphs that teach about inequality and 24 graphs about climate change.

• View our archives that link to all past releases, organized by topic, graph type and Stat Nugget.

• Learn more about the notice and wonder teaching strategy from this 5-minute video and how and why other teachers are using this strategy from our on-demand webinar.

• Sign up for our free weekly Learning Network newsletter so you never miss a graph. Graphs are always released by the Friday before the Wednesday live moderation to give teachers time to plan ahead.

• Go to the American Statistical Association K-12 website, which includes teacher statistics resources, Census in the Schools student-generated data, professional development opportunities, and more.

Students 13 and older in the United States and Britain, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public.

What is Network Address Translation (NAT)? 

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What is Network Address Translation (NAT)? 

Many of the networks we access daily use network address translation (NAT) to preserve your privacy and help conserve the limited amount of IP addresses available. Understanding how NAT works comes in handy when you’re working in data science, cybersecurity, and systems or network administration. Ahead, we’ll go over how NAT works, the different types of NAT, and why they’re used.

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How does NAT work? 

Before we get into the inner workings of NAT, it’s helpful to review that IP (short for internet protocol) addresses are strings of identifying numbers that are associated with a specific device or computer network. IP addresses are used to identify the host or network interface and provide the location, so that data packets can be routed between devices. 

NAT involves transferring local private addresses to a public one, which then passes them on to a router and ultimately to the sites you visit on the ​internet​. NAT takes the local IP addresses assigned to each device and combines them under one​ IP address​. This creates the public-facing IP address associated with your home or organization. 

Local IP addresses only exist on the local access network (LAN) and don’t allow outside resources to access them. With NAT in place, the router acts as a middleman for all devices used when navigating the internet and returns answers to queries you submit.​     ​ 

Other uses for NAT: Multi-homing and router-based filtering 

NAT can also be used for multi-homing, a process that allows the network to connect to multiple ​internet​ service providers. This reduces the chances of being impacted by an outage or network downtime. Multi-homing can also make load balancing through the router equipment much easier. 

Load balancing ensures that a uniform number of computers are connecting through the same connection. This decreases load times and leads to better overall performance for the end-user. Load balancing can be automated through the router using border gateway protocol, a set of protocols that helps the router understand where to route traffic. 

Businesses can use NAT to operate router-based filtering and tracking of web traffic. This kind of filtering can prevent team members from visiting inappropriate or unproductive websites, and tracking can help detect potential security issues. For example, if someone visited a known phishing website or exposed company information to an outside organization. 

Understanding the different types of NAT 

There are at least four types of NAT, including: 

  • Static​:​ A static NAT uses the same IP address repeatedly, each time you connect to the ​internet​, in a one-to-one connection. 
  • Dynamic​:​ A dynamic NAT changes, cycling through a selection of available IP addresses each time you connect. 
  • Port​:​ A port address translation (PAT) is a specific type of dynamic NAT. In this setup, internal IP addresses are routed to one registered IP address through ports. Thanks to its more complex nature, a PAT may need to be set-up and supervised by a network administrator. 
  • Overlapping​:​ Overlapping NAT is done through a lookup table, which replaces the IP addresses from your internal network that are already registered on another network with unregistered ones. 

Why NAT is important 

By using NAT to manage the IP addresses at your home or business, your private information, user data, and browsing history are protected against hackers and other bad actors who can use this information to target you while you conduct business online.  But the required information about your public router address is shared so you can access the ​internet​.  

In the early days of the ​internet​, it seemed unlikely that IP addresses would ever run out. Most homes didn’t even have one computer, and businesses only had a handful in the office. Over time, as an ​internet​ connection became vital to more devices, the limited nature of the IP addresses available became more of an issue. 

The average home today has multiple devices connected to the ​internet​ at any time, from computers to smart TVs to wearable devices. Rather than assign five or seven different IP addresses to the devices all within the home, NAT takes them all and consolidates them into one. 

The same concept applies on a larger scale within large office environments, where teams’ computers and smart devices used for work get assigned the same IP address. In factories that operate a large-scale manufacturing environment with internet-connected equipment, NAT is vital to help balance the number of connections made and decrease latency. 

The future of NAT 

Though NAT offers a short-term solution to the limited ​number​ of IP addresses, a long-term fix is needed. New 128 bit length IP addresses, available under a protocol known as IP version 6, will increase the number of IP addresses available to ​​340 undecillion IP addresses. While​​ IP address conservation likely won’t be an issue after this point, NAT’s benefits make it a valuable tool many companies will want to continue using even when new IP addresses abound. 

Learn more about cybersecurity 

If you want to increase your knowledge about how to protect sensitive information online, check out our network security basics cheat sheet. You might also consider taking Codecademy’s Introduction to Cybersecurity course. In this course, you’ll learn the fundamentals of using the available tools and technology to keep yourself and others secure on the web.

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