Why do computers heat up/need cooling
In: Engineering
The bits inside the computer that do the, well, computing? They depends on electrical current moving around in conductive (but not perfectly conductive) materials. Moving a current through some resistance generates heat. It might be minimal for any given computational operation, but even small computers perform *loads* of operations over time. Without some means of getting the heat elsewhere (since it would simply move into nearby computer parts/air in the case if left alone), the cumulative heat buildup in a computer case or in specific components can become so great that it damages said components.
So we devise ways of moving the hot air around, giving heat more efficient pathways away from the originating parts, etc.
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