After receiving his PhD in Physics from MIT, Jay Last worked with William Shockley, a Nobel Prize recipient for the invention of the transistor, at Shockley Semiconductor Laboratories. In 1957 Last was one of eight who founded Fairchild Semiconductor Corporation. At Fairchild he worked on developing the first commercial silicon planar transistors and then led the R&D group that produced the first integrated circuit chips. In 1961 Last joined Henry Singleton at Teledyne Inc. and set up a semiconductor division with Jean Hoerni, developing and manufacturing complex integrated circuit chips for Teledyne systems programs and space and military applications, including for the first space voyage to the moon. He then became Teledyne’s vice president for technology, overseeing technical interaction of Teledyne’s divisions, which totaled over 150 entities by the mid 1970s. After leaving Teledyne, Last founded Hillcrest Press, writing and publishing books dealing with California art, ethnic art, and graphic arts. In 1980 Last founded the Archaeological Conservancy, dedicated to saving American archaeological sites.
