What if the integrated circuit had gone differently?

A whole circuit etched onto one chip of silicon, the thing that makes electronics shrink and cheapen forever.

If it had gone differently: Electronics stay built from discrete parts, wired by hand; the computer never leaves the air-conditioned room.

The real history on Wikipedia ↗

Later turning points that leaned on the integrated circuit. Change it in the game and the ripples reach all of these.

1. 1957The first satellites. Without it, Space stays out of reach; there is no satellite weather, no global live television, no GPS.
2. 1977The personal computer. Without it, Computers stay institutional machines; there is no home computing, no software industry, no user base for a web.
3. 1983The mobile phone. Without it, The phone stays tied to the wall; being reachable anywhere, and the always-on culture that follows, never arrives.