Amplifiers have been around for a long time. These beasts were just coming alive in the 1930s - 1940s, at the hands of several individuals including Harold S. Black, George Philbrick and H. W. Bode. Since the advent of the solid state operational amplifier (op amp), enabled by the invention of silicon transistors and the integrated circuit (IC), the amplifier has increasingly become a staple for signal conditioning in most electronic systems. Given the long time span between these beginning years and the present, you would think that we have finally come to terms with understanding this five-terminal device. Furthermore, isn't there something else out there that has successfully obsoleted these devices?