In this episode, Ned and Chris examine classical computing fundamentals, breaking down complex topics like Turing machines, the von Neumann architecture, and the role of logic gates in computing. They explain how binary operations, logic gates, and transistors come together to form the foundation of modern computers. They also get into a discussion of reduced instruction set computing (RISC) vs. x86 architectures and the trade-offs between speed, efficiency, and complexity in modern processors.

Links:

xkcd Purity: https://xkcd.com/435/

Turing Machine: https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/turing-machine/ 

Von Neumann Architecture: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Von_Neumann_architecture 

Half Adder: https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/half-adder-in-digital-logic/