How does something physical, like a CPU or stick of RAM, move and store non-physical things, such as data?

Question

Computer components are made out of raw materials, like silicon and copper. How does something physical like that create and use things we can’t “see”, like data (0s and 1s)?

Thanks!

In: 1

Answer 1

> non-physical things, such as data?

Data is very much physical. In computers, it is the specific arrangement of electric charge in the components. If you had eyes that could differentiate wires with more electrons from wires with less, a simple computer would look something like [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OfeswjPZuw) with a ton of wires rapidly changing color in certain patterns. In your head, data is the arrangement and quantity of chemicals and electrically charged ions.

At no point is “0” and “1” non-physical, because even your imagination is just a complex electrochemical machine.