Hardware

Question 1

Central processing unit (CPU)

Answer 1

The taskmaster of a computer; handles a wide range of general purpose computing tasks quickly, but is limited in terms of concurrency

Question 2

Cache

Answer 2

A very small but fast form of memory that stores data frequently accessed by the CPU; attached directly to the CPU

Question 3

Graphics processing unit (GPU)

Answer 3

A specialized processing unit used for repetitive and computationally intensive tasks such as rendering graphics, ML, etc; Massively concurrent but not general purpose

Question 4

Main memory

Answer 4

All the memory directly accessible by the CPU; RAM, ROM, and cache

Question 5

Parallel processing

Answer 5

The decomposition of a large task into smaller tasks that can be executed by multiple processors simultaneously

Question 6

Processor register

Answer 6

A form of memory used for holding intermediate values during processing; attached directly to the CPU

Question 7

Random access memory (RAM)

Answer 7

A form of memory used to store programs and data during processing; largest piece of main memory; volatile

Question 8

Read only memory (ROM)

Answer 8

A form of memory used for storing firmware and loading the OS into RAM; non-volatile

Question 9

Volatile memory

Answer 9

Memory that does not persist without power

Question 10

Data buffer

Answer 10

A form of memory (typically in RAM) used to store data which can’t be processed as quickly as it’s received

Question 11

Hard drive

Answer 11

A form of editable memory; non-volatile