CSCE101 โ Fall 2006
HW #2
1. Name four components of the motherboard and describe each component with a sentence or
two.
CPU โ The central processing unit performs all the logical and arithmetic operations within
the computer.
RAM โ Random access memory temporarily holds data and instructions while the CPU
processes both.
ROM-BIOS โ Read only memory- basic input output system is a chip containing startup
instructions for the computer.
CHIPSET โ These are chips on the motherboard that help control information flow in the
system.
2. Arrange the following memory areas in order of access speed (fastest to slowest):
Hard Disk, Level 3 Cache, RAM, Level 1 Cache, Registers, Level 2 Cache
Registers, Level 1 Cache, Level 2 Cache, Level 3 Cache, RAM, Hard Disk
3. Why does computer code need parity bits? Explain two parity bit schemes that were
discussed in class.
Parity bit schemes provide a way of checking to see whether data received is the same as the
data sent.
Odd parity and even parity were the two schemes discussed in class.
Odd parity adds a 1 bit to a data stream to make the number of 1s odd:
1101 1110 1
Even parity adds a 1 bit to a data stream to make the number of 1s even:
1101 1110 0
The number of 1 bits is checked before and after data is sent to see if it is the same.
4. Discuss the different types of microprocessor chips.
Intel, AMD and Motorola are the different companies that produce chip families.
For example, Intel produces a family of chips for low-end to high-end PCs.
These companies also produce multi-core chips that provide more processing power than the
single-core chips.
5. Discuss the four different methods of measuring processor speed. Which types of computers
use which rates of measurement?
The different methods of measuring processor speed are:
Hertz โ Measures the number of clock cycles per second. This measurement is used for
microcomputers.
MIPS โ Measures the number of instructions per second (in millions). This measurement is
used for workstations, minicomputers and mainframes.
Flops โ Measures the number of floating point instructions per second. This measurement is
used primarily for supercomputers.
A fraction of a second โ This measurement is used for all computers.
