Ask Dr. Universe: What is a microchip and how does it work?

Dr-Universe-230PULLMAN, Wash. – Microchips are smaller than your fingernail and packed with itty-bitty electronic parts. These parts are hundreds of times thinner than the hairs on your head, but sometimes you’ve got to think small to think big.

More than fifty years ago, humans invented vacuum tubes that made electricity flow in different directions or get stronger. The tubes made it possible to invent televisions and computers, even if they were the size of dinosaurs. Ok, they weren’t that big, but computers really could fill a whole room.

Learn more in the complete Dr. Universe column here.

 

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