From the moment a digital alarm rouses you in the morning until you rest your head at night, your day is seamlessly enabled by technology. Screens light up on command. Voices answer questions. Devices anticipate your needs before you speak them. We credit this frictionless existence to brilliant software, visionary developers, and sleek interface design. But the great illusion of the 21st century is that our world runs on code. In reality, it runs on physical geology—highly refined, deeply excavated chunks of the earth’s crust. While the broader markets obsess over AI and the cloud, the hard truth is that every ... (full story)