What If Microprocessors Never Existed?

Microprocessors are so deeply integrated into our lives, we’ve pretty much completely stopped noticing them. But they’re always there, affecting our lives in some surprising ways. Sure, they’re in your smartphone and computer — but also your toaster, your stove, your TV, your car and just about everywhere else. That’s because, as processor technology has advanced, making processors that ten years ago would have cost a fortune and be possessed of mind-blowing power are now so cheap and disposable that people shove them into just about anything that needs a “brain” without a second thought.

But what if microprocessors somehow pulled a George Bailey and just…stopped existing? Beyond obvious things, like having to fill out carbon paper forms to get pencils at work and no Internet, how else would they affect your life? What would change? What would become harder? What would become more expensive?

We decided to break out the consequences to the world without the microprocessor, and it’s a lot more than just having to actually attend meetings instead of just getting the email update when you pretend to have something else to do. Take a look and see for yourself how different (and difficult) life would be without them…

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