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Golden anniversary of the microprocessor

Posted: 15 Nov 2021 01:07 PM PST https://www.kb6nu.com/golden-anniversary-of-the-microprocessor/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email


I used to marvel at the changes that occurred during the lifetime of my grandparents. Born in the early 1900s, they saw the rise of the automobile,
the invention of radio and television, and our first attempts at computers.

Now, at the age of 66, Im beginning to marvel at the changes that have
occurred during my lifetime. For example, weve now reached the 50th
anniversary of the microprocessor.



The ad above announces the 4004, 4-bit microprocessor and the 4001 2568 mask-programmable Read-Only Memory (ROM), the 4002 320-bit Random Access
Memory (RAM), and 4003 10-bit shift register. In all, Intel is touting this series of ICs as a new era of integrated electronics.

And, indeed, it was. Before this, companies built computers from
small-scale integration (SSI) and medium-scale integration (MSI) integrated circuits. Quite often, these were transistor-transistor logic (TTL) chips.

Just to see how far weve come, consider that the Intel 4004 had 2,300 transistors. Apples new M1 Max processor has more than 57 billion (yes, billion) transistors! This is all just so incredible to me—and I have a degree in electrical engineering.

For more information on the history of the 4004 microprocessor, see Say
Happy 50th Birthday to the Microprocessor, Part I by Steven Leibson in Electronic Engineering Journal.

The post Golden anniversary of the microprocessor appeared first on KB6NUs
Ham Radio Blog.

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