______ __ __ ______ __ __ ______ ______ __ /\ ___\ /\ \/ / /\ __ \ /\ \ / / /\ __ \ /\__ _\ /\ \ \ \___ \ \ \ _'-. \ \ \/\ \ \ \ \/ / \ \ __ \ \/_/\ \/ \ \ \ \/\_____\ \ \_\ \_\ \ \_____\ \ \__/ \ \_\ \_\ \ \_\ \ \_\ \/_____/ \/_/\/_/ \/_____/ \/_/ \/_/\/_/ \/_/ \/_/
Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.
- Arthur C. Clarke
Here begins a journey into the innerworkings of computers. This will be a (roughly) six part series explaining computers from first princples—transistors to the internet. An estimated table of contents follows:
Modern computers consist of billions of parts doing billions of operations every second. Eletrical and Computer Engineers handle the immense complexity of these marvels using one main tool: abstraction. This is the idea that the complex innerworkings of some system can be wrapped by a simple external-facing interface, such that the user of said interface need not worry about the internals of the system.
An example of this is the automobile, where the average person can learn to drive relatively quickly and get from point A to B without needing to know complex engine thermodynamics or petroleum refinement chemical engineering. This abstraction allows end-users to get stuff done without needing specialized knowledge.
It should be noted in advance that each chapter is just the tip of the iceberg for each of these topics; one could obtain several PhDs in each of these topics and still not fully understand the immense complexity. These articles offer a gentle introduction to each topic, and act as an inspirational jumping off point for further study.
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