Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

Computing > Theory: Computer Architecture > Flashcards

Theory: Computer Architecture Flashcards

1
Q

What is the role of the processor?

A

To execute program instructions in order to run applications.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

Name two types of main memory

A

-Random access memory (RAM)
-Read only memory (ROM)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

Which is usually faster: main memory or secondary storage?

A

Main memory

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

Name two types of information that may be held in main memory

A

-Program instructions
-Frequently used data

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

What is meant by a bus?

A

A series of parrallel wires that connects internal components of a computer

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

Which bus is used to transport memory addresses?

A

Address bus

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

Which bus is used to send information to and from different components?

A

Data bus

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

How many parallel wires does the address bus have?

A

8

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

An address bus with n parallel wires can allow how many addressable memory locations?

A

2^n

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

What effect does increasing the width of the data bus have?

A

Increases the volume of data that can be transferred at any one time.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

What is the role of the control bus?

A

Carries control signals, including the system clock which regulates the operation of the computer system

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

What is the name given to hardware that controls the communication of data between the processor and external hardware devices?

A

I/O controllers

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

Describe the main difference between Harvard and Von Neumann architecture.

A

Von Neumann consists of shared memory for instructions and data, Whereas Harvard architecture has them seperate

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

What is the drawback of Von Neumann architecture?

A

An instruction fetch and data operation cannot occur at the same time

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

Is RAM or ROM volatile or non volatile

A

RAM is volatile
ROM is non volatile

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

What is meant by the stored program concept?

A

Machine code instructions stored in main memory are fetched and executed serially by a processor that performs arithmetic and logical operations

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

What is an advantage of using the stored program concept?

A

Allows one computer to run several different programs

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

When using the stored program concept, what two things could the contents of a memory location be interpreted as?

A
  1. Instructions
  2. Data
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

Which type of architecture is extensively used in embedded systems?

A

Harvard architecture

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

Which type of architecture is used in general purpose computer systems?

A

von Neumann

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

Name the two architectures on which stored program computers can be based.

A

Harvard architecture, von Neumann architecture

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

Which type of register is the status register: general purpose or special purpose?

A

Special purpose

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q

Which of the following is not found within the processor? Control unit, Main memory, Buses

A

Main memory

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

For what do the letters ALU stand

A

Arithmetic Logic unit

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
25
Q

What effect does increasing the width of the address bus have?

A

Increases the computers amount of addressable memory

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
26
Q

Which register hold the instruction that is currently being executed by the processor?

A

Current instruction register

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
27
Q

What is cache?

A

A small portion of fast memory used to store frequently used information in the processor

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
28
Q

What name is given to small storage locations used to hold data temporarily in the processor?

A

Registers

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
29
Q

What is meant by this assembly language instruction?

STR R3, 33

A

Store the value in register 3 into memory location 33

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
30
Q

Which register holds the contents of the memory location that has been read from or data that is to be stored?

A

Memory buffer register

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
31
Q

Which part of a computer’s processor generates signals at a regular frequency?

A

Internal clock

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
32
Q

Which special purpose register is abbreviated as MAR?

A

Memory Address Register

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
33
Q

What name is given to the data to be used in an instruction: opcode or operand?

A

Operand

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
34
Q

Form an assembly language instruction that would mean: “Add the value in register 4 to the value in register 5 and store the result in register 3”

A

ADD R3, R4, R5

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
35
Q

In which stage of the fetch decode execute cycle is the program counter incremented?

A

Fetch

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
36
Q

Between which two stages of the fetch decode execute cycle is the status register checked?

A

Execute and fetch

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
37
Q

What name is given to the group of instructions that a processor can carry out?

A

Instruction set

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
38
Q

In which addressing mode does the value specified by an operand signify a memory address?

A

Direct addressing

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
39
Q

Name two parts of a barcode reader

A

Laser, lens, photodiodes, mirror

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
40
Q

Which parts of a laser printer heat the paper, fixing the toner to the page?

A

Fusers

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
41
Q

What is a bayer filter?

A

A bayer filter is a colour filter array (CFA) for arranging RGB color filters on a square grid of photosensors

42
Q

Where is the Bayer filter used?

A

used in most single chip (CCD or CMOS) digital image sensors used in digital cameras, camcorders and scanners to create a colour image.

43
Q

Define CCD and CMOS

A

Charge coupled device, complementary metal oxide semiconductor. Two different technologies for capturing images digitally

44
Q

What is the difference between CCD and CMOS ?

A

CMOS faster than CCD. CCD allows for higher video frame rates. CMOS imagers provide higher dynamic range and require less current and voltage to operate.

45
Q

Why is a bayer filter used?

A

allows photosensors, which normally only record light intensity, to record light wavelength as well.

46
Q

What does a bayer filter look like? Draw it

A
47
Q

Which technology is used for transferring information wirelessly between a tag and a reader?

A

Radio frequency identification (RFID)

48
Q

What is RFID?

A

a technology that uses radio waves to passively identify a tagged object

49
Q

What type of diagrams, consisting of light and dark portions, contains information that can be read by a computer?

A

Barcodes

50
Q

What type of diagrams consisting of light and dark portions contain information that can be read by a computer?

A

Barcodes

51
Q

Which type of RFID tag can be read from many metres away?

A

Active

52
Q

What is the difference between active and passive RFID tags?

A

Where a passive tag has no internal power source and obtains its operating power from the radio frequency energy transmitted by the RFID reader, active RFID tags come equipped with its own battery and internal transmitter in the form of a beacon or transponder, typically allowing data to be rewritten and modified.

53
Q

In a hard-disk drive, what is mounted at the end of an actuating arm?

A

The read/write head

54
Q

What is an actuating arm?

A

The access arm is in every mechanical hard drive with a similar to the arm of a record player. As the platter spins, the access arm adjusts along the axis point to move the read/write heads to read/write/delete information

55
Q

Which form of secondary storage is best suited for use in phones and tablets?

A

Solid-state drives (SSDs)

56
Q

Give the three types of secondary storage device with example.

A

-Magnetic storage devices, hard disk drives
-optical storage devices, CD, DVD, Blu-ray disks
-solid state storage devices, solid state drives and USB memory sticks

57
Q

Which form of secondary storage typically comes in capacities between 500 GB and 5TB?

A

Hard disk drives (HDD)

58
Q

Name one way of increasing the capacity of a hard disk drive without altering its overall size

A
  1. Adding more platters
  2. Decreasing the width of tracks
59
Q

What are tracks in hdd?

A

-The data is stored on the disk in thin concentric bands called tracks.
-There can be more than a thousand tracks on a 3 1/2 inch hard disk.
-Tracks are a logical rather than a physical structure
-Are established when the disk is low level formatted

60
Q

What is a platter in hdd?

A

One or more aluminium, glass or ceramic disk coated in a magnetic media located within the hard drive

61
Q

Which part of a digital camera regulates the path of light

A
62
Q

Define a bus

A

A bus is a communication system that transfers data between components inside a computer, or between computers

A set of parallel wires that connect together components in the CPU in order to pass signals between them

63
Q

What advantages does Harvard architecture have over Von Neumann architecture? What is it used for?

A

-higher performance, faster
-internal processor structure for caching
Microprocessors, embedded devices/systems, microcontrollers

64
Q

Stored program concept WHAT IS IT??

A

-Instructions or programs are stored with data in main memory// RAM
-Program is run by fetching decoding and executing instructions from main memory in sequence.
-Program can be replaced by loading another program into main memory.
-contents of a main memory location can be interpreted as either and instruction or data

65
Q

Name four system hardware decisions that affect the performance of the processor: plus effects.

A

-multiple cores
-cache memory
-faster clock speed
-bus speed/size
-heat dissipation

66
Q

Name an Assembly instruction and what it does:

A

ADD
SUB
DIV
LSR
LSL
LDR
LDA
BNE
CMO

67
Q

What is ROM, give an example:

A

-Read only memory
-can’t be written to
-bootstrap loader, loads bios

68
Q

Name one of the technological factors to consider when selecting a mainboard:

A

-number of RAM ports
-CPU compatibility
-I/O

69
Q

Name two of the three system busses

A

-address bus
-control bus
-data bus

70
Q

Give one difference between Harvard and Von Neumann architecture

A

harvard architecture stores instructions and data seperately whereas von neumann stores instructions and data in the same memory space.

71
Q

Name two registers

A

-CIR
-MDR
-MAR
-PC
-ACC
-GPR

72
Q

What does the program counter do?

A

Stores the memory address of the next instruction to be executed

73
Q

What is the difference between direct and immediate addressing modes?

A

Direct addressing modes contain the memory address of the data being used, whereas immediate addressing modes contain the data being used
-# is used to show immediate

74
Q

Explain parity checks

A

Parity checks contain a bit that indicates whether the number of ones is odd or even

75
Q

BNE, what does it do?

A

‘Branch not equal’, checks if two values are equal and branches depending on if they are equal or not.

76
Q

Explain how the width and speed of a data bus can affect performance

A
77
Q

What is stored in cache?

A

Frequently used instructions and data

78
Q

CMP, what does it do?

A

Compares two values

79
Q

Name and explain a factor that can affect CPU performance

A

-multiple cores
-clock speed
-bus width/speed
-heat dissipation

80
Q

Explain the three levels of cache and what they are used for

A

Level 1: smallest, but fastest. Split into instructions and data cache.
Level 2: more spacious than level 1 cache, but slower as it is further away than L1
Level 3: more spacious, again slower. Specific memory dedicated to improving the performance of L1 and L2

81
Q

Role of ALU

A

simple arithmetic and logic operations

82
Q

Role of Control Unit

A

Controlls the various components of the processor. Controls fetch execute cycle

83
Q

Role of registers

A

Small storage locations that hold data temporarily, high read and write speeds

84
Q

What are general purpose registers?

A

Used as storage for any data that is required by instructions during execution

85
Q

What are special purpose registers?

A

Assigned to the storage of specific information

86
Q

List the registers:

A

-program counter
-current instruction register
-memory address register
-memory buffer register
-status register

87
Q

What does the program counter do?

A

Holds the memory address of the next instruction

88
Q

What does current instruction register do?

A

Holds the instruction currently being executed by the processor

89
Q

What does the memory address register do?

A

Stores the memory address of a memory location to be read from or written to

90
Q

What does the memory buffer register do?

A

(Also called memory data register) holds the contents of a memory location that has been read from or data that is to be stored.

91
Q

What does the status register do?

A

Contains a number of bits which change to indicate an interrupt

92
Q

What is the system clock used for?

A

A timing signal that changes at regular frequencies. Synchronises the communication between components of the processor and the rest of the computer system.

93
Q

What are the four different types of barcode scanner?

A

-pen style reader
-laser reader
-CCD reader
-camera based readers

94
Q

What is the disadvantage of CCD sensors in cameras?

A

-bulkier
-uses up to 100 times more power than CMOS

95
Q

What is an advantage and disadvantage of CMOS?

A

-not as bulky
-uses much less power than CCD
-lower quality images

96
Q

How are coloured pictures captured?

A

-sensors (like ccd or cmos) are placed behind a colour filter

97
Q

Describe two methods of coloured image capturing

A

-incoming light is split into three separate parts and each is passed through a red blue and green filter, higher quality images but bulky
-a mosaic of red, blue and green filters is placed in front of the sensor. Software makes approximations for each pixel based on values of surrounding pixels. Produces approximate, but still accurate inages. More compact.

98
Q

Describe the parts of a laser printer

A

-powdered ink (toner) stored in hoppers
-negatively charged drum
-laser

99
Q

Describe the process of a laser printer

A

-a bitmap image is generated of the image
-the laser draws a mirrored negative version of the image onto the drum as it turns
-the areas that the laser hits of the negatively charged drum, lose their negative charge
-the drum rotates past the toner hoppers
-charged toner is attracted to non-lasered areas of the drum.
-toner particles are then bound to the paper using heat and pressure as the drum rotates over it.

100
Q

What is a disadvantage of a laser printer?

A

-Printed image will not be photorealistic
-the process would need to be repeated 4 times for a colour image, for cyan magenta yellow and black toner.

101
Q

What is a disadvantage of active RFID tags?

A

Must be much larger to accommodate for battery

Computing (14 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2024 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions