A semiconductor chip is a piece of silicon with tiny circuits carved into it that are either completed or interrupted via a switch called a transistor
All of the ones and zeros that undergird all of software and data storage are produced by circuits turning on or off
Semiconductors today have millions or often billions of these tiny circuits etched into them that provide the processing power modern computing requires
Today we’re bringing you an episode on chips. No, not potato chips. Kevin has been pitching an episode on the truly fascinating world of chips and semiconductors for quite a while, but our friends at the The Ezra Klein Show got to it first. This week on Hard Fork: Ezra Klein’s engrossing conversation with historian Chris Miller. It’s a must listen. Thank you to Ezra for beating us in our quest for a great chips episode.
We'll be back with our regularly scheduled tech coverage, with Kevin and Casey next week.