> how transistors work is by magic

ok but it's "just" semiconductor band-gap physics, which my monkey grug brain can kind of just barely make out, if I squint

> tubes also work by magic

tubes work by "just" thermionic emission, or "tube physics", which grug brain has a better handle on

> electromagnets work by magic

okay, you've got me there, physics grug brain think magnets high magic.

tubes work by not just thermionic emission (that'd be a diode) but also by a sort of uncanny leveraging of inverse square laws in free space surrounding the grid. when the first tube amplifier was invented, it was by accident, it wasn't understood how it worked.

You can make computers (in a non economical fashion) using pipes of water and water actuated valves. This can be done in a manner _highly_ analogous to transistor, tube or relay machines. That was what convinced me that computers are not magic.