Integrated circuit

An integrated circuit or monolithic integrated circuit (also referred to as an IC, a chip, or a microchip) is a set of electronic circuits on one small plate ("chip") of semiconductor material, normally silicon. This can be made much smaller than a discrete circuit made from independent electronic components. ICs can be made very compact, having up to several billion transistors and other electronic components in an area the size of a fingernail. The width of each conducting line in a circuit can be made smaller and smaller as the technology advances; in 2008 it dropped below 100 nanometers, and has now been reduced to tens of nanometers.

ICs were made possible by experimental discoveries showing that semiconductor devices could perform the functions of vacuum tubes and by mid-20th-century technology advancements in semiconductor device fabrication. The integration of large numbers of tiny transistors into a small chip was an enormous improvement over the manual assembly of circuits using discrete electronic components. The integrated circuit's mass production capability, reliability and building-block approach to circuit design ensured the rapid adoption of standardized integrated circuits in place of designs using discrete transistors.

Microchip (comics)

David Linus "Microchip" Lieberman (often known as Micro) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Mike Baron and artist Klaus Janson, he first appeared in The Punisher #4 (Nov. 1987) as an ally of The Punisher for many years. He assisted the Punisher by building weapons, supplying technology and providing friendship, though in more recent publications, Microchip gradually evolved from the Punisher's friend to a bitter villain.

Fictional character biography

David Linus "Microchip" Lieberman was a legendary computer hacker in the early days of the hacking business, performing numerous scams and hacks still held in awe today, until one scam brought him too close to real-world criminals forcing him to go into "retirement" as a quiet unassuming businessman. This ended when his nephew, attempting to follow in his favorite uncle's footsteps, was caught and killed after accidentally hacking into the private computers of Wilson Fisk (a.k.a., The Kingpin). While personally investigating his nephew's murder, Lieberman met and started collaborating with The Punisher. Microchip's help proved invaluable to Castle; he served not just as a hacker and cyber-investigator. Micro also helped Castle: manage and launder his finances (i.e., the money Castle takes from the criminals he kills); set-up and equip Castle's safehouses; train Castle in more "specialized" skills for his war on crime; and, obtain hard-to-get ammunition and equipment. Less obsessed with Castle's personal war, Microchip acts as a de facto counseler to Castle (e.g., encouraging Castle to take occasional vacations and breaks, to avoid burn-out or losing his mind).

Microchip implant (animal)

A microchip implant is an identifying integrated circuit placed under the skin of an animal. The chip, about the size of a large grain of rice, uses passive RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) technology, and is also known as a PIT tag (for Passive Integrated Transponder).

Externally attached microchips such as RFID ear tags are commonly used to identify farm and ranch animals other than horses. Some external microchips can be read with the same scanner used with implanted chips.

Uses and benefits

Animal shelters, animal control officers and veterinarians routinely look for microchips to return lost pets quickly to their owners, avoiding expenses for housing, food, medical care, outplacing and euthanasia. Many shelters place chips in all outplaced animals.

Microchips are also used by kennels, breeders, brokers, trainers, registries, rescue groups, humane societies, clinics, farms, stables, animal clubs and associations, researchers, and pet stores.

Microchips can activate some pet doors programmed to recognize specific animals.

Anna

Anna may refer to:

People

Anna (Disney)

Princess Anna of Arendelle is a fictional character who appears in Walt Disney Animation Studios' 53rd animated film Frozen. She is voiced by Kristen Bell as an adult. At the beginning of the film, Livvy Stubenrauch and Katie Lopez provided her speaking and singing voice as a young child, respectively. Agatha Lee Monn portrayed her as a nine-year-old (singing).

Created by co-directors Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck, Anna is loosely based on Gerda, a character of the Danish fairytale The Snow Queen by Hans Christian Andersen. In the Disney film adaptation, Anna is depicted as the princess of Arendelle, a fictional Scandinavian kingdom and the younger sister of Princess Elsa (Idina Menzel), who is the heiress to the throne and possesses the elemental ability to create and control ice and snow. When Elsa exiles herself from the kingdom after inadvertently sending Arendelle into an eternal winter on the evening of her coronation, fearless and faithful Anna is determined to set out on a dangerous adventure to bring her sister back and save both her kingdom and her family.

Anna (singer)

Anna (born Anna Cote-Wursler on July 9, 1987) is a singer of the group Bon-Bon Blanco. She has five brothers and is the youngest sibling in the family. She uses Anna in her solo efforts, but she uses her real name when part of the band. She was born in Tokyo, Japan, but she has American citizenship.

Her husband is Japanese baseball player Manabu Mima.

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