The Accidental History of the @ Symbol | Science & Nature | Smithsonian Magazine.
The symbol’s modern obscurity ended in 1971, when a computer scientist named Ray Tomlinson was facing a vexing problem: how to connect people who programmed computers with one another.
Read more: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/The-Accidental-History-of-the-at-Symbol-165593146.html#ixzz2DFyYlBxY