10 Most Important Scientific Discoveries Of 2019
4. The First Computer Chip To Feature More Than One Trillion Transistors Was Announced
In computing, the continued reduction of transistors was predicted via Moore's Law, which suggested the number of transistors on a microchip doubled every two years, and an unsurpassable limit would one day be reached. That law may be broken now that researchers have produced a chip holding more than one trillion transistors.
The chip, made by Cerebras Systems, is the largest processing chip ever made, and a significant leap from the company's 1971 model, which featured 2,300 transistors. In terms of Moore's Law, the cap may be broken as new materials are discovered that limit the transference of heat, which stands as one of the physical barriers against ever-shrinking transistors.
The processor chip wasn't developed to simply reach a milestone; rather, it was made specifically with artificial intelligence in mind. AI requires a great deal more transistors and processing power than a typical chip, and the more a company can pack into a small space, the more they can achieve as the technology develops.
While science fiction has limited AI to the realm of world-destroying robots and other chaotic enterprises, its use in modern applications can help identify specific chains of DNA that cause/inhibit diseases, create enhanced codes that are seemingly unbreakable, and improve upon many other important aspects of daily life.