Deck 5: Computer Systems Organization

Question 1

Machine language instructions can be decoded and executed by the control unit of a computer.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

The RAM of a computer provides volatile storage.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Both RAM and ROM are memory chips into which information has been pre-recorded during manufacture.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

Examples of nonvolatile storage are mass storage devices such as disks and tapes.

Question 5

The normal mode of operation of a Von Neumann machine is sequential.

Question 6

Registers can be accessed much more quickly than random access memory.

Question 7

In a direct access storage device, every unit of information has a unique address.

Question 8

In a two-level memory hierarchy, when the computer needs a piece of information, it looks in RAM first, then cache memory.

Question 9

The set of all operations that can be executed by a processor is called its I/O set.

Question 10

In the MIMD parallel processing model, there is a single program whose instructions are fetched/decoded/executed in a sequential manner by one control unit.

Question 11

The time it takes to fetch or store a cell is the same for all the cells in random access memory.

Question 12

The branch of computer science that studies computers in terms of their major functional units and how they work is known as computer organization.

Question 13

As computers become faster, memory access speeds are keeping pace.

Question 14

Each processor/memory pair in the MIMD parallel processing model executes its own program in its own local memory at its own rate.

Question 15

The three parts of the ALU are together called the processor.

Question 16

The Memory Data Register holds the address of the cell to be fetched or stored.

Question 17

The principle of locality states that when the computer uses something, it will probably use it again very soon.

Question 18

The sectors of a disk are placed in concentric circles called cells.

Question 19

Memory locations are stored in row major order.

Question 20

Computer manufacturers use a standard cell size of 8 bytes.

Question 21

System software is an intermediary between the assembly language and hardware components of the Von Neumann machine.

Question 22

Machines that use the simplified approach to designing instruction sets are known as RISC machines.

Question 23

The Von Neumann bottleneck is the phenomenon where sequential one-instruction-at-a-time computer models cannot handle large-scale problems.

Question 24

The ____ holds the address of the next instruction to be executed.

A) status register
B) program counter
C) condition register
D) instruction register

Question 25

The ____ are the devices that allow a computer system to communicate and interact with the outside world as well as store information.

A) registers
B) arithmetic/logic units
C) control units
D) input/output units

Question 26

To understand how computers process information, we must study computers as collections of ____ that perform tasks such as information processing, information storage, computation, and data transfer functional units.

A) data types
B) functional units
C) hardware
D) memory units

Question 27

A(n) ____ handles the details of input/output and compensates for any speed differences between I/O devices and other parts of the computer.

A) cache
B) I/O register
C) decoder circuit
D) I/O controller

Question 28

The ____ of a disk is the time needed to position the read/write head over the correct track.

A) latency
B) frequency
C) transfer speed
D) seek time

Question 29

If a computer has a maximum of 2^N memory cells, then each address field in a machine language instruction must be ____ bits wide to enable us to address every cell.

A) N
B) 2N
C) N²
D) 2^N

Question 30

The ____ of a disk is the time for the beginning of the desired sector to rotate under the read/write head.

A) latency
B) transfer time
C) frequency
D) seek time

Question 31

How many bytes are in a gigabyte?

A) 2¹⁰
B) 2²⁰
C) 2³⁰
D) 2¹⁰⁰

Question 32

What are the four major components of the Von Neumann architecture?

A) input unit, output unit, central processing unit, memory
B) random access memory, data registers, cache memory, nonvolatile storage
C) central processing unit, arithmetic logic unit, control unit, input/output
D) memory, input/output, arithmetic logic unit, control unit

Question 33

Machine programming languages were designed to make programming less cumbersome, confusing, and error prone.

Question 34

The ____ of a disk is the time for the entire sector to pass under the read/write head and have its contents read into or written from memory.

A) latency
B) transfer time
C) frequency
D) seek time

Question 35

Parallel processing enables researchers to easily and transparently access computer facilities without regard for their locations.

Question 36

The acronym ____ is frequently used to refer to the memory unit of a computer.

A) ROM
B) CD
C) MDR
D) RAM

Question 37

A(n) ____ is a high-speed memory unit.

A) MIMD
B) I/O controller
C) decoder
D) cache

Question 38

The ____ machine language instructions alter the normal sequential flow of control.

A) data transfer
B) arithmetic
C) branch
D) compare

Question 39

It is the task of the ____ to fetch, decode, and execute instructions.

A) arithmetic/logic unit (ALU)
B) I/O controllers
C) memory
D) control unit

Question 40

A(n) ____ is a storage cell that holds the operands of an arithmetic operation and that, when the operation is complete, holds its result.

A) decoder
B) register
C) I/O controller
D) cache

Question 41

The ____ holds a copy of the instruction fetched from memory

A) program counter
B) instruction register
C) cache register
D) instruction decoder

Question 42

The ____ operation in Von Neumann machines uses a special set of bits known as condition codes to represent the result of the operation.

A) compare
B) addition
C) control
D) looping

Question 43

In a parallel processing model, the control unit ____ instructions to every ALU.

A) broadcasts
B) decodes
C) stores
D) encodes

Question 44

During the ____ phase, the control unit circuitry generates the necessary sequence of control signals and data transfer signals to the other units of the computer to carry out the instruction.

A) fetch
B) execution
C) store
D) decode

Question 45

A(n) ____ is used to represent the instructions that can be decoded and executed by the control unit of a computer.

A) intermediate language
B) machine language
C) compiler
D) ASCII code

Question 46

To alert the computer that an input/output operation is done, a(n) ____ is transmitted to the processor.

A) condition code
B) interrupt signal
C) broadcast
D) execution instruction

Question 47

To solve the difficulty of scaling memory organization, memories are physically stored into ____ dimensional organization.

A) one
B) two
C) three
D) multi

Question 48

Why would a computer engineer choose to use CISC?

A) it is inexpensive
B) it is easy to use
C) it has better security features
D) it directly provides features needed

Question 49

Why aren't computer memories built completely out of cache memory?

A) cache is too expensive
B) other types of memory are faster
C) cache is not scalable
D) cache is not reliable enough

Question 50

In a ____, the original contents of the memory cell are unchanged.

A) nondestructive fetch
B) destructive store
C) random access memory
D) volatile storage