Change people's lives at home and around the world
March 2023
A group of electrical and computer engineering students etched the entire Book of Mormon onto a silicon disc (called a wafer in the electronics world) that can fit in the palm of your hand. According to the students, each word is made up of letters that are only 25 by 35 micrometers (a millionth of a meter). After engraving the four-inch diameter wafer with all 291,652 words contained in the book, naturally the students gave it a gold-plated coating.
“Like Moroni himself, we etched into this wafer, so it is physically engraved,” says student Ethan Belliston. “Current electronic storage degrades over time, but this will last forever. It’s a great way to create a compact, permanent record readable with a simple microscope.”
For good measure, the group also created micro editions of the Old and New Testaments. All three wafers are currently on display on the fourth floor of the Clyde Building.
True story: since the 1960s, engineering students across the country have been building concrete canoes to test their engineering excellence and hydrodynamic design skills. Naturally, they started racing them, and now it’s a thing.
Emily Ellis and Gabe Reed directed and produced Liminus: The Silent Guard with nearly 50 other students to receive an International Award for video game design.
Jane Drinkwater exemplifies BYU’s aim to prepare students for “lifelong learning and service.”
