Is short for the 'National Science Foundation' which is an independent federal agency based in the United States of America. It was created in the 1950's to help promote the progress of science in many areas of government and civilian life. They are usually given a large annual budget in the billions, and in 1987 they helped created the first high-speed Internet backbone. They logically called it NSFNET, it began with a solitary T1 line in the first year of operation. It helped connect hundreds of smaller networks together, and replaced ARPANET as the main network linking universities and other government facilities. With the help IBM and others the NSF has continued to develop their backbone with increased speed in following years. However in 1995 it was dismantled and replaced with a commercial backbone.