MIPS Architecture and Computer History Quiz

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Questions and Answers

What is the total addressable range of the original MIPS architecture?

0x0000 0000 to 0xFFFFFFFE

0x0000 0000 to 0x7FFFFFFF

0x0000 0000 to 0xFFFF FFFF (correct)

0x8000 0000 to 0xFFFFFFFF

Which of the following describes the usable memory segment in MIPS?

User data Segment (correct)

System data Segment

Temporary data Segment

Reserved data Segment

How many 32-bit registers does MIPS architecture use?

32 (correct)

What is the purpose of the Program Counter (PC) register in MIPS?

To save the address of the current instruction. Signup and view all the answers

What happens if an offset exceeds the limits of the 'User data Segment' in MIPS?

It causes an exception. Signup and view all the answers

Which registers are categorized as temporary registers in MIPS?

$8-$15 and $24-$25 Signup and view all the answers

How many bytes are the 32-bit registers in the MIPS architecture?

4 bytes Signup and view all the answers

How many bytes are reserved for the operating system and ROM in MIPS?

2^31 bytes Signup and view all the answers

What was the primary purpose of the vacuum tubes in the ENIAC?

To act as an ON/OFF switch Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following accurately describes the transition from vacuum tubes to transistors?

Transistors decreased the size and energy consumption of computers Signup and view all the answers

Who developed the first programming language known as COBOL?

Grace Hopper Signup and view all the answers

What was a significant contribution of the vacuum tube computers to computing terminology?

The term 'bug' for errors Signup and view all the answers

Which operating system was developed by Bell Laboratories?

UNIX Signup and view all the answers

How does a mechanical calculator primarily operate?

By using ten numbers (0-9) Signup and view all the answers

Which statement accurately characterizes the reduction of counting options in electronic calculators?

It simplifies operations by using only two voltage levels. Signup and view all the answers

What is the primary base of the decimal numbering system humans typically use?

Base 10 Signup and view all the answers

What does the instruction 'ori $8, $0, 0x2' accomplish?

Put the value 0x2 into register $8 Signup and view all the answers

How does MIPS architecture handle addressable memory?

Addresses must be accessed in increments of 4 bytes Signup and view all the answers

What is the result of the instruction 'addu $10, $8, $9'?

It adds unsigned integers in registers $8 and $9 and stores the result in $10 Signup and view all the answers

What format is used to save an assembly source code file?

.asm Signup and view all the answers

What is an immediate operand in assembly programming?

A constant number integrated into the instruction itself Signup and view all the answers

If the base address is $0 and the offset is 8, what is the resulting memory address?

$0 + 8 Signup and view all the answers

What consequence occurs when trying to access an address in between the 4-byte steps?

An exception is raised Signup and view all the answers

What is the total number of bits used for an immediate value in certain machine instructions?

16 bits Signup and view all the answers

What is the first step when converting a non-negative number to its binary representation in MIPS?

Write the number without the sign Signup and view all the answers

Which MIPS instruction is used to load a word of data from memory into a register?

lw Signup and view all the answers

In the context of MIPS assembly language, what does the 'sw' instruction do?

Transfers data from the register to the main memory Signup and view all the answers

What command syntax is associated with loading a word from a specific address in RAM?

lw d, off(b) Signup and view all the answers

What is the result of inverting all bits of a binary number in MIPS assembly?

Turning 1s to 0s and 0s to 1s Signup and view all the answers

What should be added to the least significant bit (LSB) after inverting all bits to complete the two's complement operation?

1 Signup and view all the answers

Which of these represents the correct way to use the 'store word' instruction in MIPS?

sw $8, 0x10030000($7) Signup and view all the answers

In MIPS, leading bits must be added to ensure a 32-bit representation during number conversion. What type of leading bits should be added for a positive number?

Leading 0s Signup and view all the answers

What is the purpose of the 'li' instruction in assembly language?

To put an immediate value into a register Signup and view all the answers

What happens after executing the 'lw' instruction?

A value is fetched from a RAM address and stored in the specified register. Signup and view all the answers

In the instruction 'lw $13, 0x10030000($12)', what does '0x10030000' represent?

An offset to be added to the value in register $12 Signup and view all the answers

What would the result in register $12 be after executing 'li $12, 0x4'?

0x4 Signup and view all the answers

What value is stored in RAM after executing 'sw' with the specified parameters?

0x11223344 Signup and view all the answers

Which is a key step in the process of executing a 'load word' operation?

Calculating the RAM address using offsets Signup and view all the answers

What does the combination of 'sw' and 'lw' instructions allow in assembly language?

To read from and write to memory addresses effectively Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following best describes how the 'lw' instruction operates?

It retrieves data from a calculated address and places it in a specified register. Signup and view all the answers

What is the relationship between clock period (Tc) and clock frequency (f)?

Tc is the reciprocal of f. Signup and view all the answers

What does CPI stand for in terms of processor performance?

Cycles per Instruction Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following best describes a critical path in processor circuits?

The path that dictates the maximum clock period due to propagation delays. Signup and view all the answers

If a processor has a clock frequency of 2GHz, what is its clock period (Tc)?

0.5 ns Signup and view all the answers

What factor affects the cycles per instruction (CPI) for a CPU?

The complexity of the instructions. Signup and view all the answers

How is the formula for calculating CPI structured?

CPI = total number of instructions / (instructions of one type * cycles needed to execute one instruction). Signup and view all the answers

What does the clock frequency (f) indicate in terms of a processor's operation?

The rate at which clock cycles occur per second. Signup and view all the answers

What is the typical effect of an increased propagation delay in processor circuits?

Decreased clock frequency. Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Computer Architecture & Operating Systems - Historical Overview

Computers are defined as devices that assist in calculations, including pre-historical counting tools
Tally sticks were used from 35,000 BCE to 20,000 BCE to record numbers and quantities, not for calculations
Abacus, dating back to 1700 BCE, is still used in some countries for basic arithmetic
Pascal's calculator could handle 6-digit numbers, performing addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division
Stepped reckoner could multiply 8-digit numbers and divide a 16-digit number by an 8-digit number.
Jacquard loom used punched cards—a fundamental concept in early programmable machines.
Babbage's machines (difference engines) used divided differences to calculate polynomial values at nearby points.
Babbage's machines were designed to improve the accuracy of navigational tables—a precursor to modern computers
Babbage machine (1820) consisted of N columns to calculate polynomials of degree n(x")
Hollerith's electric tabulating system (1880s) used punched cards for processing statistical data—a precursor to punch-card computers

Computer Architecture - Digital Logic & Binary Arithmetic

Decimal system uses 10 symbols (0-9) for representing numbers.
Binary system—used in computers—employs only 0 and 1
Conversion methods for changing between decimal and binary representation are important—reading remainders in reverse order is important.
Hexadecimal system—base 16—uses 0-9 and A-F to represent numbers.
Logic gates (AND, NAND, OR, NOR, XOR, NOT) are fundamental digital circuit building blocks

Computer Architecture - Semiconductor Technology

Vacuum tubes were used in early computers, but their size and energy consumption were prohibitive.
Semiconductors (silicon, germanium)—used in transistors—have conductivity between conductors and insulators.
Transistors—switches controlled by voltage—replace vacuum tubes, decreasing size and power consumption
MOSFETs (metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors) are the most common transistors in computer chips
nMOS and pMOS transistors have opposite operational characteristics, crucial to digital circuit design
Transistors form the basis for logic gates

Computer Architecture - Digital Circuits

Early computer design used vacuum tubes
Transistors replaced vacuum tubes to minimize size and power
Digital circuits use binary signals( 0s and 1s)
The use of logic gates and bitwise operators to perform calculations is key

Computer Architecture - Hardware Design & HDL

Integrated circuits (ICs or microchips) combine many circuits on a single chip, in several types based on application
FPGA chips are programmable, and ASIC chips have fixed operations
Hardware description languages (HDLs) like VHDL and Verilog are static descriptions of digital circuits. This is a language used for describing circuits using higher level descriptions
HDLs are used mainly in logic simulation; HDL code is the expected input to the CAD tool that synthesizes the circuit
Verilog code is written to define the functionality or behaviour of a circuit
HDL focuses on behavioural models of how the components interact

Computer Architecture - Von Neumann Architecture

Basic components—processor, memory, I/O devices, and a bus—are essential
Data and instructions are stored in the same memory location
The von Neumann bottleneck describes the limitation of the system, as data and instruction processing is not simultaneous.
Harvard architecture separates memory for instructions and data, allowing parallel processing— a speed improvement over von Neumann.

Computer Architecture - Instruction Set Architecture (ISA)

ISA is the programmer's view of the computer system's capabilities.
ISA defines instruction set, addressing modes, and encoding to understand how instructions are represented to the computer's hardware
Instruction Set Architecture—defines the instructions and formats that a microprocessor can follow
R-type, I-type, and J-type instructions are common types in the Instruction Sets.

Computer Architecture - Programming Languages

A high-level language, such as C, C++, Python, or Java, provides easier programming—it is a more human-readable form of programming
Assembly language provides lower-level manipulation of registers and memory. Assembly language is specific to processor types (ARM, MIPS, x86).
Binary is the most fundamental form of programming—it is what the computer understands

Computer Architecture - Memory Management

Memory is organised into directories, which are similar to libraries
The main memory in a system is made up of RAM. It is a volatile space to hold data for execution.
Addressing methods exist for accessing and storing data in the main memory

Computer Architecture - Processes and Threads

Processes are running programs, supporting parallelism with OS scheduler handling multiple tasks on a single CPU
Threads are lightweight processes sharing the same memory, increasing efficiency but needing care to handle shared data.

Computer Architecture - Multi-Processing

The scheduler allows multiple processes to run at the same time by allocating (time slices or quanta) of processing time to each.
The scheduler is important to maintain order of execution in an effective way, because it can determine how effectively the computer system performs with multiple tasks.

Operating Systems - Introduction

Operating Systems (OS) provide an interface between users and computer hardware.
OS acts as a middleware to make managing and processing tasks easier.
OS provides memory and CPU management, handling access and use of hardware resources.
OSs are a form of middleware sitting between application programs and the hardware.

Operating Systems - Kernel

The operating system's kernel is the core, responsible for managing computer hardware.
The kernel manages several important tasks such as the scheduling of processes, memory management, and file management.
The kernel usually runs with special rights, enabling it to access all hardware resources.

Operating Systems - Files and File Systems

File systems organize data on storage devices
File names and directory structures organize files on a computer.

Operating Systems - Memory Management

The operating system's memory manager allocates and manages memory resources and RAM usage
Memory is a crucial component when developing and implementing operating systems, because it is the most important feature in a computer system.

Operating Systems - Security

Operating systems must balance functionality with security.

Operating Systems - Popular Operating Systems

Windows, macOS, Linux (multiple distributions), Android, iOS,and others are examples of widely used operating systems.

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Description

Test your knowledge on the MIPS architecture and the history of computing. This quiz covers essential topics such as memory segments, registers in MIPS, and early computing technologies like vacuum tubes and transistors. Challenge yourself with these thought-provoking questions!