n 1947, scientists had invented the "transistor" to replace the bulky and fragile glass vacuum tubes in computers. This enabled an explosion in the electronics industry with products such as the pocket-sized "transistor radios." But this demand created a new problem: warehouse-sized rooms full of employees clumsily soldering transistors together by hand

n 1947, scientists had invented the "transistor" to replace the bulky and fragile glass vacuum tubes in computers. This enabled an explosion in the electronics industry with products such as the pocket-sized "transistor radios." But this demand created a new problem: warehouse-sized rooms full of employees clumsily soldering transistors together by hand