1.1

• What is the function of the Accumulator (ACC) in a processor?

  It temporarily stores the results of operations performed by the ALU.
• What does the Address Bus do?

  It carries the memory location address of the register the data is being carried to or from.
• What is the role of the Arithmetic and Logic Unit (ALU)?


  It performs arithmetic calculations and logical operations on data for computer programs.
• What are buses in a computer system?

  Buses are a physical set of parallel wires connecting and carrying groups of bits between several components of a computer.
• What is cache memory?

  Cache is a small and fast but expensive memory in the CPU used to store instructions and data that are accessed regularly.
• How does clock speed affect a processor's performance?

  It controls how often instructions are executed and data is fetched.
• What is contemporary processor architecture?

  It is a modern computer architecture combining elements of both Von Neumann and Harvard architectures.
• What does the Control Bus do?

  The Control Bus carries control signals from the CU to synchronize access and use of data.
• What is the function of the Control Unit in a CPU?

  It controls and manages the execution of instructions and sends control signals to coordinate execution.
• What is the Current Instruction Register (CIR)?

  The CIR is a special register that stores the current instruction being executed and decoded.
• What are the components of an instruction in the CIR?

  The instructions are divided into operand and opcode.
• What does the Data Bus do?

  The Data Bus is a bi-directional bus for carrying data and instructions between the processor and memory.
• What are the steps involved in the Fetch-Decode-Execute cycle?

  1. Fetch: Retrieve the instruction from memory.

  2. Decode: Interpret the instruction and read the required data.

  3. Execute: Carry out the required actions by the CPU.
• What is Harvard Architecture?

  It is a computer architecture that stores data and instructions in separate memories.
• What is the Memory Address Register (MAR)?


  The MAR is a special register that stores the memory address of the next instruction to load or data to use.
• What is the Memory Data Register (MDR)?


  The MDR is a special register that temporarily stores data to be read from or written to the computer’s memory.
• What does the Number of Cores refer to in a processor?

  A core is a processing unit that handles instructions with its own fetch-execute-decode cycles.
• What is Pipelining in processors?

  Pipelining is the simultaneous decoding of several instructions by decoding the next instruction while fetching the one after.
• What is the Program Counter (PC)?

  The PC is a special purpose register that stores the address of the next instruction to execute.
• What are Registers in a CPU?

  Registers are special memory cells that can be accessed quickly and temporarily store data and control information.
• What is Von Neumann Architecture?

  It is a computer architecture where a single control unit manages program control via a linear sequence of fetch-execute-decode cycles.
• What is a Complex Instruction Set Computer (CISC)?

  CISC is a more complicated and expensive processor design that can execute a series of tasks in a single complex instruction.
• What is the advantage of CISC processors?

  They use less RAM due to the variety of instructions.
• What is a Graphic Processing Unit (GPU)?

  A GPU is a specialized processing unit with a huge number of small cores that allow efficient parallel computation.
• What are Multicore Systems?

  Multicore Systems incorporate several CPU cores into a single processor chip to help distribute workload.
• What is a Parallel Processing System?

  It is a system that splits a job into several subtasks which are simultaneously carried out by each core.
• What is a Reduced Instruction Set Computer (RISC)?

  RISC is a simpler processor design that can only execute a single simple instruction each clock cycle.
• What is Flash Storage?

  Flash Storage is a solid state technology that stores data on a collection of memory chips without moving parts.
• What are Input Devices?

  Input Devices are peripheral devices that allow the user to communicate and pass readable data into a computer.
• What is Magnetic Storage?

  Magnetic Storage relies on the polarization of magnetic particles to store bits on a magnetic material.
• What is Optical Storage?

  Optical Storage stores data in the reflectivity of a surface and is read and written to by a laser.
• What are Output Devices?

  Output Devices are peripheral devices that convert signals from a computer into a human-readable form.
• What is Random Access Memory (RAM)?

  RAM is memory used to store programs and data in use by the computer, which is volatile.
• What is Read-Only Memory (ROM)?

  ROM is memory used to store information that is permanently required to boot up and run the computer.
• What is a Storage Device?

  A Storage Device is any medium on which data can be stored even when powered off.
• What is Virtual Storage?

  Virtual Storage uses the hard disk as though it were an extension of memory to free up more RAM for current programs.