The past decade has witnessed a thousand-fold increase in magnetic recording areal density, which has revolutionized the way information is stored and retrieved. These advances are the first demonstration of spintronics, which utilizes electron spin, as well as its charge, for information storage, transmission and manipulation. The societal impacts are exemplified by the Nobel Prize in Physics awarded a few months ago to the discovery of the Giant Magnetoresistance (GMR) effect that opened the door to spintronics.