Unit 2

Question 1

states that integrated circuit resources double every 18-24 months (1965)

Answer 1

Moore’s law

Question 2

processor speed improvements have slowed due to

Answer 2

heat reasons (lack of proper cooling)

Question 3

program that translates high level code to assembly

Answer 3

compiler

Question 4

program that translates a symbolic version of instructions into the binary version

Answer 4

assembler

Question 5

symbolic representation of machine instructions (human readable)

Answer 5

assembly language

Question 6

binary representation of machine instructions

Answer 6

machine language

Question 7

where data is transformed via computations (works with the control to make up the processor)

Answer 7

datapath

Question 8

component of the processor that commands the datapath, memory, and I/O devices according to the instructions of the program

Answer 8

control

Question 9

storage area in which programs are kept when they are running and that contains the data needed by the running programs

Answer 9

memory

Question 10

portion of RAM that holds the data for a complete video frame, essentially acting as a temporary storage for pixel information before it’s displayed

Answer 10

frame buffer

Question 11

Also called a chip. A device combining dozens to millions of transistors

Answer 11

integrated circuit

Question 12

Also called processor. The active part of the computer, which contains the datapath and control and which adds numbers, tests numbers, signals I/O devices to activate, etc

Answer 12

central processor unit (CPU)

Question 13

Memory built as an integrated circuit; it provides random access to any location. Access times are 50 nanoseconds and cost per gigabyte in 2012 was $5 to $10

Answer 13

DRAM (dynamic random access memory)

Question 14

Also memory built as an integrated circuit, but faster and less dense than DRAM

Answer 14

SRAM (static random access memory)

Question 15

built from SRAM that acts a buffer for larger memory

Answer 15

cache memory

Question 16

abstract interface between the hardware and the lowest-level software that encompasses all the information necessary to write a machine language program that will run correctly, including instructions, registers, memory access, I/O, etc

Answer 16

instruction set architecture

Question 17

user portion of the instruction set plus the operating system interfaces used by application programmers. It defines a standard for binary portability across computers

Answer 17

application binary interface

Question 18

hardware that obeys the architecture absctraction

Answer 18

implementation

Question 19

storage that only retains memory when it receives power

Answer 19

volatile memory (DRAM)

Question 20

form of memory that retains data without power

Answer 20

involatile memory (DVDs, USB)

Question 21

memory used to hold programs while they are running (DRAM)

Answer 21

main or primary memory

Question 22

nonvolatile memory used to store programs and data between runs (flash, magnetic disks)

Answer 22

secondary memory

Question 23

form of nonvolatile secondary memory composed of rotating platters coated with a magnetic recording material. Because they are rotating mechanical devices, access times are about 5 to 20 milliseconds and cost per gigabyte in 2012 was $0.05 to $0.10

Answer 23

magnetic disk or hard disk

Question 24

nonvolatile semiconductor memory. It is cheaper and slower than DRAM but more expensive per bit and faster than magnetic disks. Access times are about 5 to 50 microseconds and cost per gigabyte in 2012 was $0.75 to $1.00.

Answer 24

flash memory

Question 25

device containing hundreds of thousands to millions of transistors

Answer 25

very large-scale integrated (VLSI) circuit

Question 26

substance that does not conduct electricity well

Answer 26

semiconductor

Question 27

microscopic flaw in a wafer or in patterning steps that can result in the failure of the die containing that defect

Answer 27

defect

Question 28

individual rectangular sections that are cut from a wafer, more informally known as chips

Answer 28

die

Question 29

percentage of good dies from the total number of dies on the wafer

Answer 29

yield

Question 30

total time required for the computer to complete a task, including disk accesses, memory accesses, I/O activities, operating system overhead, CPU execution time, etc

Answer 30

response time/execution time

Question 31

number of tasks completed PER unit time

Answer 31

throughput/bandwidth

Question 32

actual time the CPU spends computing for a specific task

Answer 32

CPU execution time

Question 33

average number of clock cycles per instruction for a program or program fragment

Answer 33

clock cycles per instruction (CPI)

Question 34

measure of the dynamic frequency of instructions across one or many programs

Answer 34

instruction mix

Question 35

the time for one clock period, usually of the processor clock, which runs at a constant rate.

Answer 35

clock cycle

Question 36

length of each clock cycle

Answer 36

clock period

Question 37

dominant technology for integrated circuits; the primary source of energy consumption is so-called dynamic energy—that is, energy that is consumed when transistors switch states from 0 to 1 and vice versa

Answer 37

CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor)

Question 38

performance enhancement possible with a given improvement is limited by the amount that the improved feature is used. It is a quantitative version of the law of diminishing returns (focus on improving whatever the slowest operation is first)

Answer 38

Amdahl's law