Computer Organization and Architecture - Chapter 2
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What is the main purpose of branch prediction in the context of pipelining?

  • To execute instructions in a random order.
  • To minimize the number of pipeline stalls.
  • To schedule instructions based on their dependency. (correct)
  • To improve the accuracy of executing conditional statements.

    • What does speculative execution allow processors to do?

  • Execute instructions that will not be used.
  • Execute instructions ahead of their appearance in program flow. (correct)
  • Execute all instructions in a strict sequence.
  • Avoid analyzing instructions before execution.

    • Which of the following best describes superscalar execution?

  • Using multiple pipelines to execute several instructions simultaneously. (correct)
  • Limiting execution to one instruction at a time to avoid conflicts.
  • Executing several instructions sequentially in a single pipeline.
  • Relying solely on branch prediction for execution efficiency.

    • How does data flow analysis contribute to instruction scheduling?

    <p>By identifying dependencies between instructions.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the effect of keeping execution engines busy through speculative execution?

    <p>It maximizes the throughput of executing correct instructions.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the purpose of the benchmark in SPEC documentation?

    <p>To evaluate system performance through the compiler output optimization</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which metric focuses on the time taken to execute a compiled benchmark?

    <p>Speed metric</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What does the rate metric indicate in the context of performance evaluation?

    <p>The capacity of a system to complete tasks within a specified timeframe</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the role of the reference machine in SPEC benchmarks?

    <p>To establish a consistent baseline performance for all benchmarks</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is required for all reported results in the context of SPEC documentation?

    <p>Following strict guidelines for compilation</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What has contributed to the dramatic drop in the cost of computer systems?

    <p>Advancements in microprocessor production and design</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which of the following applications requires significant power from modern microprocessors?

    <p>Speech recognition</p> Signup and view all the answers

    How do modern cloud service providers meet the needs for high-volume applications?

    <p>Using massive high-performance banks of servers</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What technique allows contemporary processors to improve performance by handling multiple instructions?

    <p>Superscalar execution</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What does the processor's ability to predict which instructions are likely to be processed next refer to?

    <p>Branch prediction</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which scenario exemplifies the use of advanced processors in business environments?

    <p>Heavy transaction and database processing</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What characteristic allows processors to move data or instructions efficiently?

    <p>Conceptual pipeline processing</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which of the following is NOT a modern application requiring high-performance processing?

    <p>Data entry tasks</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which programming language is primarily used for weather forecasting applications?

    <p>Fortran</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the application area of the 'blender_r' benchmark?

    <p>3D rendering and animation</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which of the following benchmarks has the highest Kloc value?

    <p>wrf_r</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which benchmark is used for fluid dynamics?

    <p>ibm_r</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which programming languages are commonly used in the 'cam4_r' benchmark?

    <p>Fortran, C</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the primary focus of the 'fotonik3d_r' benchmark?

    <p>Computational electromagnetics</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which benchmark is related to molecular dynamics with the least Kloc?

    <p>nab_r</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What specific application area does 'parest_r' relate to?

    <p>Optical tomography</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the arithmetic mean of execution times for Program 1 on Computer A?

    <p>1.38 secs</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which computer has the highest harmonic mean rate for Program 2?

    <p>Computer A</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the geometric mean of normalized times for Computer C under the normalization of Computer A?

    <p>1.41</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the total execution time for Program 2 on Computer B?

    <p>3.0 secs</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What does the harmonic mean of rates for Computer B indicate?

    <p>More resistant to outliers</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which normalized time is the lowest for Program 1 across all computers?

    <p>0.75 for Computer C</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the arithmetic mean of the rates for Program 1 on Computer C?

    <p>79.17 MFLOPS</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the inverse of the total execution time for Program 1 on Computer A expressed in MFLOPS?

    <p>0.36 MFLOPS</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which benchmark has the highest base rate recorded?

    <p>525.x264_r</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the peak rate for the benchmark 520.omnetpp_r?

    <p>1140</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which of the following benchmarks has the lowest base seconds duration?

    <p>548.exchange2_r</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the difference in seconds between the base duration of 505.mcf_r and 502.gcc_r?

    <p>60</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which benchmark has the same base and peak seconds of 722 and 713, respectively?

    <p>520.omnetpp_r</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the peak rate of the 541.leela_r benchmark?

    <p>1420</p> Signup and view all the answers

    How is the benchmark 557.xz_r characterized in terms of base and peak rates?

    <p>Low base and peak rates</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which benchmark has the second highest peak rate recorded?

    <p>541.leela_r</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Study Notes

    Computer Organization and Architecture - Chapter 2

    • Computer system costs are decreasing while performance and capacity are increasing dramatically.
    • Modern laptops have the processing power of IBM mainframes from 15 years ago.
    • Microprocessors are inexpensive and often disposable.
    • Desktop applications requiring significant processing power include image processing, 3D rendering, speech recognition, video conferencing, multimedia authoring, voice and video annotation of files, and simulation modeling.
    • Businesses use powerful servers to handle transaction processing and support client/server networks.
    • Cloud service providers employ high-performance server banks for high-volume, high-transaction-rate applications.

    Processor Performance Concepts

    • Processors fetch instructions and data from memory.
    • Superscalar processors issue multiple instructions per clock cycle, increasing processing efficiency.
    • They look ahead to predict which instructions will be processed next and use parallel pipelines to accomplish this.
    • Data flow analysis and branch prediction enable processors to execute instructions ahead of their predicted appearance in the program.

    Performance Balance

    • Organizations utilize architectural adjustments to fix mismatches in component capabilities.
    • Architectural adjustments include:
      • Increasing the number of bits retrieved simultaneously from DRAMs ("wider" DRAMs).
      • Employing wide buses for efficient data transfer.
      • Reducing the time spent in main memory access to improve processing.
      • Enhancing cache performance.
      • Increasing interconnect bandwidth between processors and memory.
      • Improving the frequency of memory access and the speed of buses using a hierarchical bus structure.

    I/O Device Data Rates

    • A bar graph shows the typical data rates for various I/O devices.
    • Ethernet modems have the highest data rates, followed by graphics displays and Wi-Fi modems.
    • Hard disks and optical discs have relatively lower data rates compared with other devices.

    Improvements in Chip Organization and Architecture

    • Processor speed is increasing due to smaller logic gate sizes and more tightly packed more gates.
    • Increased clock rates cause reduced propagation times for signals.
    • Larger and faster caches are also used, reducing cache access times.
    • Processor organization and architecture are also being modified to improve instruction execution speed (e.g., parallelism).

    Problems with Clock Speed and Logic Density

    • Power density increases with logic and clock speed, generating more heat.
    • RC delay limits electron speed due to resistance and capacitance in wires.
    • As components get smaller, wire interconnects become thinner, increasing resistance and capacitance.
    • Memory latency and throughput lag due to slower access speed than processor speeds.
    • The number of transistors, clock frequency, and cores have increased significantly over time in processor technology.

    Multicore Processors

    • The use of multiple processors on a single chip, without increasing clock rate, may improve performance.
    • Larger caches are justified given two processors.

    MIC (Many Integrated Core) and Graphics Processing Unit (GPU)

    • MICs offer enhanced performance with a large number of processor cores.
    • They can be used in many applications.
    • GPUs are designed for parallel operations on graphics data.
    • They traditionally reside on plug-in graphics cards.

    Amdahl's Law

    • Gene Amdahl developed a law to assess the potential speedup of programs using multiple processors relative to single processors.
    • The law shows the problems encountered when creating multi-core machines.
    • Software must adapt for highly parallel execution to take advantage of the processor power.

    Little's Law

    • A fundamental, simple relationship applicable to nearly all systems in a steady state, without leaking items, this law can be used for queuing systems.
    • The average number of items in a queuing system is the product of the average arrival rate and the average time spent in the system.

    Benchmark Principles

    • Benchmarks should be written in higher-level languages for portability.
    • Benchmarks must also represent the domain of programming well, whether related to systems, numerical, or commercial programming.
    • Benchmarks should be measurable and widely accessible.

    SPEC (System Performance Evaluation Corporation)

    • SPEC is an industry consortium providing benchmark suites for computer systems.
    • Performance measurements are widely used to compare and evaluate computer systems.
    • The SPEC CPU2017 benchmark suite assesses processor intensive applications, including integer and floating-point benchmarks.

    Arithmetic Mean

    • The arithmetic mean (AM) is a suitable metric when the sum of measured values is meaningful or relevant.
    • Arithmetic mean is useful for evaluating execution times across several system runs with different input values.
    • If execution time doubles, then the AM also doubles.

    Data Analysis

    • Data analysis examines performance of systems using various methods.
    • Examples include using arithmetic mean, geometric mean, or harmonic mean to examine data that involves rates (rather than simply execution time).

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