Rolling Stone has published a fascinating read on the origin’s of Facebook, which started as a Harvard student database in 2003 before quickly growing into the six most-visited website that it is today. The article examines the stories of four students who say Facebook creator Mark Zuckerberg stole their idea. From the article:

In the end, it’s difficult to assess whether Zuckerberg’s creation of Facebook constitutes a crime. Sometimes, great ideas seem to be everywhere at once. Newton and Leibniz independently developed the fundamentals of calculus, creating controversy at the turn of the 18th century; Darwin and Wallace rolled out the theory of evolution in separate papers in 1858. In October 2003, when Mark Zuckerberg sat down in his dorm at Harvard, drunk and alone, the idea of using the Web to connect people seemed as pervasive as iPods on the campus quad. The school already had an online database known as the facebook. All Zuckerberg did was make it interactive.

My thoughts exactly. Social networking sites were and are a commodity, therefore no one can copyright the general idea. Regardless, Mark Zuckerberg seems to be a bridge-burning, shrewd, and somewhat naive businessman, much like Donald Trump. But whatever the case, insightful and non-esoteric tech articles like this one are an awesome read.