Silicon Valley Stuff

Silicon Valley is the geographical epicenter of high technology-where the computer revolution began. Look it up in an atlas - but don't hold your breath; it seems to be this ethereal thing, located somewhere, out there.

The general consensus is that it begins at the southern end of the San Francisco Bay and spans roughly 30 miles to San Jose. The valley's true name is Santa Clara Valley, also known to locals as 'The South Bay.'

According to the Smithsonian Institution, it was Don C. Hoefler, a journalist, who coined the term "Silicon Valley" in 1971, for an article he was writing about the burgeoning semiconductor industry in the Santa Clara Valley.

"Silicon" because of the main ingredient used in making computer chips, and "Valley" because geographically we are surrounded by mountains. Mt. Hamilton and Diablo Range sit at the east and the Santa Cruz Mountains at the west of Santa Clara County.

Although Silicon Valley has no official borders, San Jose is usually defined as the "capital"; Sunnyvale is the "heart", and Palo Alto, with Stanford University, the "birthplace".