The truth about Bender's brain

On 14 November 1999, an episode of "Futurama," the animated sci-fi comedy series conceived by "The Simpsons" creator Matt Groening, jolted computer geeks with a display of technological acumen absolutely unprecedented in prime-time entertainment. In the episode, "Fry and the Slurm Factory," a character named Professor Farnsworth points his F-ray at the head of the show's famously ill-tempered robot, Bender. It reveals a little rectangle, apparently a chip, labeled "6502."