If you don't know how compilers work, then you don't know how computers work

(2007) and the actual title is "Rich Programmer Food" which has been submitted in the past (under the correct title) a few times with some good discussions:

https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=all&page=0&prefix=true&que...

Complete quote:

Gentle, yet insistent executive summary: If you don't know how compilers work, then you don't know how computers work. If you're not 100% sure whether you know how compilers work, then you don't know how they work.