The Uniform Resource Locator, or URL is the Internet address for a website. Often one can tell a lot about a website just by looking at its URL. If you know how to read the address, you can make an educated guess about its author, sponsor, and purpose.

Here are several URLs. Some are rather easy to decode, and others might surprise you. For each one, try to decode the URL before you go to the site. You might want to write this down:

1. This is what I think I’ll find by using the URL:
2. This what I actually found!

http://www.whitehouse.gov

http://www.oltraining.com/be_ged

http://www.nationalgeographic.com

http://www.blackplanet.com

http://www.ilovepasta.org

http://www.mariners.mlb.org

http://www.owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/index2.html

http://www.learn2.com

http://www.candyusa.org

http://www.money.org

http://seattlecentral.org/faculty/bticed

http://flightline.highline.ctc.edu/writingcenter/studlinks.htm

http://www.mapquest.com