Reference:

[Book By :Understanding Computers:

Today and Tomorrow 15th International
Edition, Deborah Morley and Charles S.
Parker.]
Lecture 2
The System Unit:
Processing and Memory

Reference:
[Book By :Understanding Computers: Today and Tomorrow 15th International Edition,
Deborah Morley and Charles S. Parker.]
 Chapter 2
The System Unit:
Processing and Memory

Reference:
Understanding Computers: Today and Tomorrow, 15th International Edition Deborah
Morley and Charles S. Parker.
 Agenda
01 How computers represent data and programs

How the CPU, memory, and other components

02 located inside the system unit

03 How the CPU works

Strategies to speed up a computer today and to

04 create faster computers in the future
 Data and Program Representation
In order to be understood by a computer, data and programs nee
d to be represented appropriately
Coding systems: Used to represent numeric, text-based, and
multimedia data, as well as to represent programs
Digital computers: Can only understand two states, off and o
n (0 and 1)
Digital data representation: The process of representing d
ata in digital form so it can be used by a computer

4
Digital Data Representation
• Bit: The smallest unit of data that a binary
computer can recognize (a single 1 or 0)
Byte = 8 bits
Byte terminology used to express the size of
documents and other files, programs, etc.
Prefixes are often used to express larger qua
ntities of bytes: kilobyte (KB), megabyte (M
B), gigabyte (GB), etc.

5
 The Binary Numbering System
Numbering system: A way of representing numbers
Decimal numbering system
Uses 10 symbols (0-9)
Binary numbering system
Uses only two symbols (1 and 0) to represent all possible
numbers
In both systems, the position of the digits determines the power
to which the base number (such as 10 or 2) is raised

6
The Binary Numbering System

7
 Coding Systems for Text-Based Data

ASCII: American Standard Code for

Information Interchange.
EBCDIC: Extended Binary-
Coded Decimal Interchange Code.

8
Coding Systems for Other Types of Data
Graphics (still images such as p
hotos or drawings)

Bitmapped images: A variety of

bit depths are possible (4, 8, 24
bits)

Vector-based images: Use math

ematical formulas to represen
t images rather than a map of pi
xels

9
 Coding Systems for Other Types of Data
Audio data: Must be in digital form in order to be stored on or proc
essed by a PC
Often compressed when sent over the Internet
MP3 files
Video data: Displayed using a collection of frames, each frame con
taining a single graphical image
Amount of data can be substantial, but can be compressed
MPEG-2 files

10
 Representing Programs: Machine Language

Machine language: Binary-based language for representing co

mputer programs the computer can execute directly
Early programs were written in machine language.
Today’s programs still need to be translated into machine lan
guage in order to be understood by the computer
Most program are written in other programming languages
Language translators are used to translate the programs into
machine language

11
Inside the System Unit
System unit: The main case of a com
puter
Houses the processing hardware for
a computer
Also contains memory, the pow
er supply, cooling fans, and i
nterfaces to connect peripheral devi
ces
Houses the drive bays in which stor
age devices (hard drives, DVD dri
ves, etc.) are located
With a desktop PC, usually looks like
a rectangular box

12
 The Motherboard
Computer chip: A very small pieces of silicon or other semi- con
ducting material onto which integrated circuits are embedded
Circuit board: A thin board containing computer chips and othe
r electronic components
Motherboard or system board: The main circuit board insi
de the system unit
All computer components must connect to the motherboard
External devices (monitors, keyboards, mice, printers) typ
ically connect by plugging into a port exposed through the ex
terior of the system unit

13
 The CPU
Central processing unit (CPU): circuitry and components packaged together and atta
ched to the motherboard
Does the vast majority of processing for a computer
Also called a processor; called a microprocessor when talking about PCs
Dual-core CPU: Contain the processing components (cores) of two separate processors on a
single CPU
Quad-core CPU: Contains 4 cores
Typically designed for desktop PCs, portable PCs, or servers
Often made by Intel or AMD

14
The CPU

15
 Processing Speed
CPU clock speed: One measurement of processing speed
Measured in megahertz (MHz) or gigahertz (GHz)
Higher CPU clock speed = more instructions processed per
second
Alternate measure of processing speed is the number of instr
uctions a CPU can process per second
Megaflops, gigaflops, teraflops
Other factors (CPU architecture, memory, bus speed, etc.) also aff
ect the overall processing speed of a computer
Benchmark tests: Can be used to evaluate overall processing spe
ed

16
 Word Size and Cache Memory
Word size: The amount of data that a CPU can manipulate at
one time
Typically 32 or 64 bits
Cache memory: Special group of very fast memory chips loc
ated on or close to the CPU
Level 1 is fastest, then Level 2, then Level 3
More cache memory typically means faster processing
Usually internal cache today

17
 Bus Width, Bus Speed, and Bandwidth
Bus: An electronic path over which data
can travel
Bus width: The number of wires in the
bus over which data can travel
Bus width and speed determine the thro
ughput (or bandwidth) of the bus

18
 Memory
RAM (random access memory): Temporary memory that the computer uses
Consists of chips connected to a memory module which is connected to the mo
therboard
SIMM(Single In-Line Memory Module), DIMM(dual inline memory module), RIM
M(Rambus inline memory module)
Holds data and program instructions while they are needed.
Adequate RAM is needed to run programs
Volatile: Contents of RAM is lost when the computer is shut off
Some forms of nonvolatile RAM are under development

19
Memory

MRAM: magnetic Ram

20
 Memory
Registers: High-speed memory built into the CPU; used by the
CPU
ROM (read-only memory): Read-only chips located on the
motherboard into which data or programs have been perman
ently stored
Retrieved by the computer when needed
Being replaced with flash memory
Flash memory: Type of nonvolatile memory that can be eras
ed and reprogrammed
Some flash memory chips are used by the PC
Flash memory chips are also used in flash memory stor
age media (sticks, cards, and drives)

21
Fans, Heat Sinks, and Other Cooling Components

Heat: A continuing problem for CPU and com

puter manufacturers
Fans: Used on most PCs
Heat sinks: Small components typically made out
of aluminum with fins that help to dissipate heat
Water cooling systems: Cool the PC with liqu
id-filed tubes
Other cooling methods (such as ion pump cooli
ng systems) are under development

22
 Expansion Slots, Expansion Cards & Express Cards

Expansion card: A circuit board used to add additional func

tionality or to attach a peripheral device
Expansion slot: A location on the motherboard into whic
h expansion cards are inserted
Express Card modules: Designed for
notebook computer expansion

23
 Buses
Bus: An electronic path within a computer over whi
ch data travels
System bus: Moves data back and forth bet
ween the CPU and memory
Expansion buses: Connect the CPU to pe
ripheral (typically input and output) device
s
PCI and PCI Express (PCIe) bus
AGP bus
Hyper Transport bus
Universal Serial Bus (USB)
FireWire/IEEE 1394 bus

24
 Ports and Connectors
• Port: A connector on the exterior of a PC’s system unit to
which a device may be attached

– Serial
– Parallel
– Network
– Keyboard/Mous
e
– Monitor (VGA,
DVI, HDMI)
– Modem/Phone

25
 Ports and Connectors
Many desktop PCs come with
a variety of ports on the front
of the system unit for easy acc
ess
A wired or wireless hub can co
nnect many devices to a single
USB or FireWire port

26
 Ports and Connectors
Notebook computers have ports simi
lar to desktop PCs, but often not as
many
Handheld computers and mobile dev
ices typically have less ports
An SD slot is
common for both memory car
ds
and to connect peripheral devi
ces

27
 How the CPU Works
CPU: Consists of a variety of circuitry and components packaged tog
ether
Transistor: Key element of the microprocessor
Made of semi-conductor material that acts like a switch co
ntrolling the flow of electrons inside a chip
Today’s CPUs contain hundreds of millions of transistors; the number
doubles about every 18 months (Moore’s Law)

28
Typical CPU Components
Arithmetic/Logic Unit (ALU): Performs integer arit
hmetic and logical operations
Floating Point Unit (FPU): Performs decimal arith
metic
Control unit: Coordinates and controls activities
Prefetch unit: Tries to fetch data and instructions bef
ore they are needed
Decode unit: Translates instructions so they are und
erstood by the control unit, ALU, and FPU
Internal cache and registers: Store data and inst
ructions needed by the CPU
Bus interface unit: Where data and instructions flow
in and out of the CPU

29
 The System Clock and the Machine Cycle

System clock: Timing mechanism within the computer system that

synchronizes the computer’s operations
Each signal is a cycle
Number of cycles per second = hertz (Hz)
Many PC system clocks run at 200 MHz
Computers can run at a multiple or fraction of the system clock
For instance, with a CPU clock speed of 2 GHz, the CPU clo
ck “ticks” 10 times during each system clock tick
During each CPU clock tick, one or more pieces of microcode are
processed

30
The System Clock and the Machine Cycle

Machine cycle: The series of operations involved in the exe

cution of a single machine level instruction
Fetch: The program instruction is fetched
Decode: The instructions are decoded so the control uni
t, ALU, and FPU can understand them
Execute: The instructions are carried out
Store: The original data or the result from the ALU or FP
U execution is stored either in the CPU’s registers or in me
mory, depending on the instruction

31
The System Clock and the Machine Cycle
 Making Computers Faster and Better Now and
in the Future
Improving performance today
Add more memory
Perform system maintenance
Uninstall programs properly
Consider placing large files on external storage devic
es
Delete temporary files
Arrange files efficiently
Scan for viruses and spyware
Empty the Recycle Bin
Buy a larger or second hard drive
Upgrade your Internet connection
Upgrade your video graphics card

33
 Making Computers Faster and Better Now and
in the Future
Strategies for faster and better computers
Improved architecture: Smaller components, faster bus sp
eeds, multiple CPU cores, etc.
Improved materials: New backing materials, flexible circuit
s, etc.
Pipelining: Allows multiple
instructions to be processed
at one time
Multiprocessing and parallel
Processing: Use multiple processors to speed up proce
ssing

34
Parallel Processing

36
 Future Trends
Reading Assignment

Quantum computing:
Optical computer:
Silicon photonics:
Terascale computing:
3D chips:

37
 Outcome
Student will be able to present Data and Program in machine understandable
form
Student could identify System Unit components
Student will able to define How the CPU Works
Student could evaluate Computers Efficiency

38
 Outcome

After completing this chapter, Student will be able to do the following:

1. Understand how data and programs are represented to a computer and be able to

identify a few of the coding systems used to accomplish this.

2. Explain the functions of the hardware components commonly found inside the
system unit, such as the CPU, GPU, memory, buses, and expansion cards.
3. Describe how peripheral devices or other hardware can be added to a computer.
4. Understand how a computer’s CPU and memory components process program
instructions and data.
5. Name and evaluate several strategies that can be used today for speeding up the
operations of a computer.
6. List some processing technologies that may be used in future computers.

39
 Review Question

• How the CPU Works

• List down the component present inside system unit.
• Convert the following binary into decimal and hexa-decimal.
• (11010101)
• (11111011)

40
Thank you