Integrated Circuit Introduction

February 11, 2026  •  EPISODE 297

Why were integrated circuits so important in making computers smaller, faster, and more powerful? In this episode of Science LIVE, Roger Billings introduces the integrated circuit. Discover how integrated circuits helped shrink computers while making them faster and more powerful—paving the way for today’s technology. The episode also highlights the excitement surrounding the great comet of 2026 and the engineering behind high-speed bullet trains.

About DrB

Dr. Roger Billings is a visionary innovator whose work has touched the lives of millions of students and transformed the landscape of education. Widely known as “DrB” to the countless kids who benefit from his groundbreaking Acellus learning system, Dr. Billings has dedicated his life to advancing education through technology. As part of DrB’s lifelong commitment to supporting education, Science LIVE was launched as a way to “give back” by mentoring students in conjunction with the Roger Billings Scholarship Program.


Read more about DrB » 
About the Roger Billings Scholarship Program »

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5,627 Comments

  1. Lionel

    How many people work the trains?

    Reply
  2. Luisa

    Is there any other country that uses the same train system to have a train as fast as the bullet train?

    Reply
  3. Gabriel

    very interesting information about integrated circuits

    Reply
  4. Anndelyn

    Loved this episode!

    Reply
  5. Charity

    Science lives are the best

    Reply
  6. Jakira

    Inventing things is fun and cool!

    Reply
  7. Conner

    i really enjoy watching science lives

    Reply
  8. Mizuanne

    I enjoyed the part about the integrated circuit!

    Reply
  9. Rayyan

    There was a national inventors day? I never knew!

    Reply
  10. Emily

    It was so great and interesting to hear about integrated circuits loved it!

    Reply
  11. Rayne

    I love Science live i love music too i love Science live i love Dr.B Science live it is the best thing.

    Reply
  12. Matvey

    that was so cool about the circuits

    Reply
  13. Lily

    I didn’t think it would take that long for us to get to space! I want to see the size of the computer!

    Reply
  14. Sophia

    This was so cool! Was a little late because I was busy.

    Reply
  15. Shyanne

    Wow! That was really interesting!!

    Reply
  16. John

    a electronic device that holds multiple components

    Reply
  17. William

    how did they manage to keep the train connected to the top railing above them while going so fast? Also, how did they manage the train to go one hundred thirty miles per hour with all those carts on it?

    Reply
  18. Jade

    cool circuts. i dont appreciate that i have to sign in every time i try to comment.

    Reply
  19. Brynley

    R15 is sooooo cool!!

    Reply
  20. Gavin

    i like dr.Billings

    Reply
  21. Monae

    It is very interesting to learn about integrated circuit and bullet train

    Reply
  22. Dexter

    I might do a science fair project!

    Reply
  23. Caraleighn

    WOAHH THE COMET LOOKS SO COOL!

    Reply
  24. Isabella

    Theres a national inventors day? I never knew that! Plus the stuff about the bullet train is so interesting

    Reply
  25. Madalynn

    I would rather travel by plane if they were all that fast.

    Reply
  26. Lily

    Loved this weeks science live

    Reply
  27. Kylee

    How come we can still see the comet?

    Reply
  28. Lincoln

    I enjoyed the comets segment too.

    Reply
  29. Leia

    Hi, I think we should name the comet, Billings A20 which stands for the month and date scientists predict the comet will be seen. Also it’s to honor Mr. Roger Billings.

    Reply
  30. Koralee

    this was fun learning about a circut.so much facts!

    Reply
  31. Season

    I love watching the science lives.

    Reply
  32. Simar

    Integrated circuits are so interesting

    Reply
  33. Zachary

    The comets part was cool.

    Reply
  34. Charlotte

    This was a very interesting Science Live!

    Reply
  35. Emily

    I love science live

    Reply
  36. Ashley

    Watching from GA!

    Reply
  37. Hunter

    Learning about circuits is so cool!

    Reply
  38. Ellie

    Loved this week’s video! Very excited for the science fair!

    Reply
  39. Sophie

    The science fair looks so cool , but too bad i cant make it there

    Reply
  40. Lily

    I just started using acellus and these science lives are really helpful, I liked hearing and leaning information about technology

    Reply
  41. Jaiden

    It was interesting hear about integrated circuit and nice to see Dr. billings.

    Reply
  42. Zailey

    The integrated circuit was so cool to learn about!!

    Reply
  43. Shamar

    I like how fast trains got over the years.

    Reply
  44. Ava

    the comet brighter than the moon is wild

    Reply
  45. Shriyans

    I want to learn more about bullet trains I think there so interesting.

    Reply
  46. Dae'na

    science is very cool

    Reply
  47. Jordon

    I’m excited to submit a science project

    Reply
  48. Hannah

    I learned so much on this weekend episode, thank you!

    Reply
  49. Ethan

    I’m enrolled in the coding class and am really excited to get to the IC and microcontroller lessons.

    Reply
  50. Shamarah

    How did trains get faster?

    Reply
  51. Jamielynn

    Will you ever do any more science lives about famous inventors?

    Reply
  52. Ethan

    My dad grew up in Japan, one time during a family trip to Japan, I got to ride in a bullet train.

    Reply
  53. Hailey

    I love you guys I just learned about the things Roger Billings has invented it’s so cool

    Reply
  54. Brianna

    We learned about bulletrains.

    Reply
  55. Skylynn

    My dad’s an electrician and he works with stuff like this.

    Reply
  56. Zakary

    I LOVE THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF TRAINS.

    Reply
  57. Sharayah

    How does the circuits work?

    Reply
  58. Madison

    R51 is so funny he cheers me up every week. I love science live!! It’s so exciting that the science fair is coming up!

    Reply
  59. Alexa

    The bullet train is really one of the best inventions, it would be amazing if something like that could be implemented in more countries!

    Reply
  60. Liam

    I love bullet trains. They are so interesting.

    Reply
  61. Dominic

    In this episode, I learned that comets are usually named after the person (or people) who discovered it.

    I also learned that comets are basically just intergalactic snowballs.

    ☃️🌌☄️

    Reply
  62. Samuel

    such a interesting episode like I have Said many times I love Watching this every week it was really interesting when yall talked about integrated circuits.

    Reply
  63. Carys

    The Japanese are so innovative.

    Reply
  64. Izaiha

    I really enjoy learning about circuits

    Reply
  65. Douglas

    Loved The Protégés segment!

    Reply
  66. Kyle

    Those bullet trains are amazing! One more reason to visit Japan some day. I didn’t realize they had been around for so long.

    Reply
  67. Valeria

    Science live is awesome!

    Reply
  68. Vayden

    Great breakdown of how integrated circuits changed everything. Crazy how much smaller and faster tech became because of this.

    Reply
  69. Desirae

    I like learning about technology.

    Reply
  70. Keith

    I love almost everything about technology

    Reply
  71. Hunter

    I wish we had bullet trains here in the US.

    Reply
  72. Audrey

    I liked the part with the bullet trains.

    Reply
  73. Madison

    i loved the interesting topics these videos always come up with.

    Reply
  74. Jaxson

    Loved the Thomas Edison joke!

    Reply
  75. Brooke

    Integrated circuits are very interesting !

    Reply
  76. Emma

    Hello from North Carolina!

    Reply
  77. Alaina

    Thank you for sharing how circuits work!

    Reply
  78. Jed

    wow really cool to hear about integrated circut.!

    Reply
  79. Elyjah

    i didnt know you can see all those things when you use a telescope

    Reply
  80. Vera

    i loved the train

    Reply
  81. Casaun

    I had some circuit boards when I was younger and it was fun to create things and figure out how they work.

    Reply
  82. Haley

    Happy inventers day!

    Reply
  83. Hunter

    Thank you! That was fun!

    Reply
  84. Clark

    Learning how to make real electrical circuits will be neat to see this video. My family is in the electrical union and work as lineman. I don’t really understand even the fundamentals of how it works so this will be cool.

    Reply
  85. Jesse

    loved this science live

    Reply
  86. Matthea

    Wow I didn’t know there was such complexity to integrated circuits!

    Reply
  87. Charlie

    So I guess you could describe comets as giant snowballs from space-spanning snowball fights!

    Reply
  88. Ian

    My favorite part was when Dr. John was talking about the great comet of 2026 and the other comets in 2026.

    Reply
  89. Trace

    computers are still mind blowing to me!

    Reply
  90. Shannondoah

    Great Science Live! Technology is astonishing!

    Reply
  91. Makayla

    i liked this episode a lot! Especially the history.

    Reply
  92. Gabriella

    I can’t believe how circuits are the size of a penny! That is so cool, Thank you guys!

    Reply
  93. Marley

    Thanks Dr. B another great episode!

    Reply
  94. Clark

    My mom tells me all of the time how when she was my age well maybe a little younger, she built a barn for her horse collection and she was in shop class at school and she even made it with electricity hooked up. She ran her own circuit wires and hooked them up by a toggle switch she made and it ran off of batteries. She made it all from scratch as part of her project. So, this really will be neat to see this video and be able to better understand what she tells me about when she was in shop class.

    Reply
  95. Tatyana

    Science lives are always the best part of my week

    Reply
  96. Gabriel

    Bullet Trains are so cool!

    Reply
  97. Phillip

    Circuits are really fascinating!

    Reply
  98. Mesa

    It was very intriguing to learn about the structure of a comet.

    Reply
  99. Asmaa

    Back at Science Live and already learning so much!

    Reply
  100. Isaiah

    comets are cool

    Reply
  101. Natalia

    Bullet trains are really cool! I have a dog named bullet!

    Reply
  102. Asher

    Checking in from Georgia

    Reply
  103. Raelynn

    Can’t wait for the next live!

    Reply
  104. Chloe

    I never knew about national inventors day! So cool!

    Reply
  105. Savina

    I liked learning about circuits, they are so cool!

    Reply
  106. Riddick

    I would love to see one of those comets, last summer me and my mother figured out how to use my telescope so we might have a better chance of catching a glimpse of one of them.

    Reply
  107. Ava

    this is my first time tuning in and it seems pretty cool

    Reply
  108. Joseph

    It was interesting hear about integrated circuit.

    Reply
  109. Oliver

    It was interesting hear about integrated circuit

    Reply
  110. Audrey

    these videos are always so interesting! cant wait for next week!

    Reply
  111. Abigail

    I love bullet trains!

    Reply
  112. Amiyah

    I can’t wait to make a project !

    Reply
  113. Jackson

    When did Acellus first come out?

    Reply
  114. Liam

    checking in from Ohio

    Reply
  115. Brayden

    the comet should be called comet r-52

    Reply
  116. Kayla

    I liked the part about the bullet train.

    Reply
  117. Riddick

    I hope I get to see one of those comets, me and my mother finally figured out how to use my telescope so maybe we’ll have a better chance of catching a glimpse.

    Reply
  118. Caleb

    I look forward to watching these every week!

    Reply
  119. Amaranthine

    I think comets are so beautiful. The comets orbit are different and they go far away.

    Reply
  120. Baylee

    Bullet Trains are soo cool!!!!!

    Reply
  121. Amelia

    How many bullet trains are in the world?

    Reply
  122. Brooklyn

    Im looking at my computer from a different perspective now. So cool!

    Reply
  123. Esther

    I enjoyed watching this episode.

    Reply
  124. Alaina

    Such a great science live cant wait for tonight’s live. I absolutely love watching them.

    Reply
  125. Dante

    This weeks live was really good and I liked learning about things that computers or trains might use.

    Reply
  126. Carlos

    The bullet train is interesting and even more knowing that they’re gonna start using magnets.

    Reply
  127. Thomas

    Hello from Texas.

    Reply
  128. Kyleigh

    comets are pretty

    Reply
  129. Seth

    The bullets trains were really cool! I sure can’t wait to see The Great Comet of 2026!

    Reply
  130. Sophia

    The thomas edison joke was great! so was the commet thing! and R51, he is not a waste of time! he is funny, he makes me laugh,

    Reply
  131. Bentley

    It’s cool that bullet trains got faster and faster.

    Reply
  132. Fayth

    The tiny size of these circuits is mind blowing. I don’t care what anyone says we are truly living in amazing times. I just wonder if they can ever get any smaller.

    Reply
  133. Kangyoon

    It was interesting hear about integrated circuit and nice to see Dr. billings.

    Reply
    • Caden

      Very interesting video. I enjoyed learning about integrated circuits.

      Reply
    • Austin

      This was a interesting thing to learn

      Reply
    • Brooklyn

      Love these videos! They inspire me so much!!

      Reply
    • Nayelie

      Always so thorough, amazing work!

      Reply
    • Elizabeth

      I love science lives.

      Reply
    • Autumn

      It’s very interesting to learn about computer and how complex they are especially when we use computers in our day to day life’s

      Reply
  134. Kangyoon

    It was interesting hear about integrated circuit.

    Reply
    • Hollie

      I have been really getting into watching these lives lately. Honestly very entertaining, and interesting to learn about these new things.

      Reply
    • Shyan

      That’s so neat how that works it’s making me look at my computer in a whole new way.

      Reply
  135. Emry

    Bullet Trains are so cool!

    Reply
    • Ahonesty

      Good science joke I love this lol!

      Reply
    • Jream

      I enjoyed learning about integrated circuits. These videos are very interesting.

      Reply
  136. Johnna

    I love R51!

    Reply
    • Abigail

      R51 is cool!!

      Reply
    • Dalia

      Wow, this was super entertaining and informational. Thanks accellus!

      Reply
    • Isabella

      Me too!!

      Reply
  137. Kylee

    Wow! Thank you so much I love learning with acellus! And I love these videos

    Reply
    • Carly

      Learning about integrated circuits is pretty interesting!

      Reply
  138. Noah

    That’s so neat how that works it’s making me look at my computer in a whole new way.

    Reply
  139. Abigail

    I didn’t know national inventer’s day existed until today and it’s very interesting that it was created by Congress in 1983 and proclaimed by president Reagan and that it falls on Thomas Edison’s birthday.

    Reply
    • Benning

      Computers are pretty complicated. I saw the inside of mine

      Reply
  140. William

    The bullet train going across the bridge was very cool. Wondering what a Navy Jet flying across a bridge would look like. Or even a space ship

    Reply
  141. Julia

    I really like these Science Lives.

    Reply
  142. Lucas

    R51 is so funny, he makes me laugh every time.

    Reply
  143. Jayla

    I remember when I was a kid my dad had a circuit practice board game and it was really fun.

    Reply
  144. Julianna

    I love watching these Acellus videos!

    Reply
  145. Isabella

    I love science!!

    Reply
    • Ella

      Technology has come such a long way. So interesting to hear how things were invented.

      Reply
  146. Ava

    Great episode computers are so interesting.

    Reply
  147. Daniel

    I love learning about technology and how it interacts with the world around us.

    Reply
  148. Jedwin

    I love these videos you always learn so much.

    Reply
  149. Aryana

    Checking in from Arkansas

    Reply
  150. Jack

    Thank you for the lesson 🙂 R51!

    Reply
  151. Paloma

    I like the video editing on Science Live.

    Reply
  152. Maya

    loved this science live!!

    Reply
  153. Johan

    I love learning with acellus

    Reply
  154. Alexis

    That’s so interesting, I can’t wait for next week’s video

    Reply
  155. Colton

    It’s so cool how computers work.

    Reply
  156. Chloe

    Love you guys and science live

    Reply
  157. Salem

    I cant wait to see the comet of 2026

    Reply
  158. Matayah

    It’s interesting how computers work

    Reply
  159. Presley

    I love comets space is so cool

    Reply
  160. Richard

    Love learning about how computers work.

    Reply
  161. Madison

    it was intresting learning something new!

    Reply
  162. Chiara

    Love watching and learning from Acellus live videos!

    Reply
  163. Kadence

    hello from Tennessee!

    Reply
  164. Kane

    I would travel by train any day if they were all that fast!

    Reply
  165. Ireland

    I’m so excited for the 2026 comet, I can’t wait to see it!

    Reply
  166. Kane

    I think I would rather travel by train than an airplane now. Super fast and good views.

    Reply
  167. Alayna

    Amazing Science Live!

    Reply
  168. Greyson

    I am really interested in space so I really loved the part about the comets! Gee I love Science Live.

    Reply
  169. Johan

    I love learning with acellus

    Reply
  170. Seth

    The integrated circuits were fun to learn about.

    Reply
  171. Annicella

    These crack me up lol!

    Reply
  172. Emerson

    R-51 is so funny!

    Reply
  173. Noah

    Acellus is the best program ever!

    Reply
  174. Emily

    Science live is one of my favorite parts of the week. I love learning about new things every week and hearing about the history of scientific breakthroughs with Dr. Tobias.

    Reply
  175. Ashley

    I find it so fascinating how even though a giant comet broke apart 1700 years ago and created thousands of comets, we can still see the remnants of it all the way into 2026. It puts into perspective how large and endless space is, and how even a small piece of matter from a rock can turn into a comet seen by the naked eye during any given moment.

    Reply

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