Computer Engineering - Computing and Technology Today

Modern Computer Development

• 1937: Mark I built by Aiken at Harvard University and IBM
  • First electronic computer using relays.
• 1939: ABC is built
  • First fully electronic digital computer using vacuum tubes.
• 1943-46: ENIAC built by Mauchly and Eckert at the University of Pennsylvania
  • First general-purpose digital computer.
• 1945: Von Neumann architecture proposed
  • Still the standard for present-day computers.
• 1947: Creation of the transistor by Bardeen, Shockley, and Brattain at Bell Labs.
• 1951: UNIVAC
  • First commercially available computer.

Computer Engineering Definition

• Computer Engineering is a blend of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science.
  • Electrical Engineering Curriculum: 50%
  • Computer Science Curriculum: 50%

Input-Process-Output (IPO) Model

• Input
  • Devices: Keyboard, mouse, scanner, punch cards
• Processing
  • CPU executes the computer program
• Output
  • Devices: Monitor, printer, fax machine
• Storage
  • Devices: Hard drive, optical media, diskettes, magnetic tape

Architecture Components

• Hardware
  • Processes data by executing instructions
  • Provides input and output
• Software
  • Instructions executed by the system
• Data
  • Fundamental representation of facts and observations
• Communications
  • Sharing data and processing among different systems

Hardware Component

• Input/Output devices
• Storage Devices
• CPU (Central Processing Unit)
  • ALU: arithmetic/logic unit
  • CU: control unit
  • Interface unit
• Memory
  • Short-term storage for CPU calculations

CPU: Central Processing Unit

• ALU: arithmetic/logic unit
  • Performs arithmetic and Boolean logical calculations
• CU: control unit
  • Controls processing of instructions
  • Controls movement of data within the CPU
• Interface unit
  • Moves instructions and data between the CPU and other hardware components
  • Bus: bundle of wires that carry signals and power between different components

Memory

• Also known as primary storage, working storage, and RAM (random access memory)
• Consists of bits, each holding a value of either 0 or 1 (8 bits = 1 byte)
• Holds both instructions and data of a computer program (stored program concept)

Software Component

• Applications
• Operating System
  • API: application program interface
  • File management
  • I/O
  • Kernel
  • Memory management
  • Resource scheduling
  • Program communication
  • Security
  • Network Module

Communications Component

• Hardware
  • Communication channels
    • Physical connections between computer systems.
    • Examples: wire cable, phone lines, fiber optic cable, infrared light, radio waves.
  • Interface hardware
    • Handles communication between the computer and the communication channel
    • Modem or network interface card (NIC)
• Software
  • Network protocols: HTTP, TCP/IP, ATAPI

Computer Systems

• All computer systems, no matter how complex, consist of:
  • At least one CPU, located in the Motherboard
  • Memory to hold programs and data
  • I/O devices
  • Long-term storage

Protocols

• Common ground rules of communication between computers, I/O devices, and software programs.
• Examples:
  • HTTP: between Web servers and Web browsers
  • TCP/IP: between computers on the Internet and local area networks
  • ATAPI: between a CPU and CD-ROMs

Standards (Software & Hardware)

• Created to ensure universal compatibility of data formats and protocols.
• May be created by committee or become a de facto standard through popular use.
• Examples:
  • Computer languages: Java, SQL, C/C++, JavaScript, Pascal, Python
  • Display standards: Postscript, MPEG-2, JPEG, GIF
  • Character set standards: ASCII, Unicode, EBCDIC
  • Video standards: VGA, XGA, RGB, HDMI

Leaders in Computer Technology (2016 Forbes List)

1. APPLE
2. SAMSUNG
3. MICROSOFT
4. GOOGLE
5. IBM

Google

• Founded in 1998
• Field of work:
  • Internet
  • Computer Hardware
  • Computer Software
• Founders: Larry Page and Sergey Brin
• Google.com is the most visited website globally.
• Second most valuable brand for 4 consecutive years; valued at $133$ billion in 2016.
• First appeared in 1996 by two founders who at the time were students at Stanford university.
• Their main idea was to create a search engine that uses a different more efficient way of gathering and displaying search results.
• At that time search engines used to rank the search results based on a counter of how many times the searched terms appeared in those sites.
• The two founders developed an idea of analyzing relationships between websites, and their first search engine was named (BackRub).
• Later on, they changed the name to “Google”, a word that originated from the misspelling of the word “Googol” which is the number $10$ raised to the power of $99$.
• Google now is one of the main leaders in innovation, one of their recent highlights comes from their AI (Artificial intelligence) unit “Deep Mind” where they worked on creating an AI system that is capable of playing the Chinese game “Go” at a professional level.

Deep Mind

• AlphaGo

AlphaGo vs Sedol (Results) - Seoul, South Korea, 9–15 March 2016

• Game one: AlphaGo won.
• Game two: AlphaGo won.
• Game three: AlphaGo won.
• Game four: Lee Sedol won.
• Game five: AlphaGo won.

Artificial Intelligence

• Artificial intelligence (AI) is the form of intelligence exhibited by machines.
• The field of AI research is defined as the study of “intelligent agents”; any machine or device that is capable of perception of its environment and has the ability to take actions to maximize its chance of success at a specific goal.
• Source: The intelligent agent paradigm

Goals of AI

• Reasoning, problem-solving
• Knowledge representation
• Planning
• Learning
• Perception
• Motion and manipulation

Computer System Overview

• Data (information)
• People (users)
• Hardware (the computer)
• Software (programs)

Looking inside your Computer Hardware

• Two important components:
  • Microprocessor
  • Memory
• A computer's hardware consists of electronic devices

Computer Architecture

• INPUT AND OUTPUT
• MEMORY
• PROCESSOR
• INPUT
• STORAGE
• OUTPUT

Shapes of a Computer

• Supercomputer
• Mainframe
• Minicomputer
• Workstation
• Desktop
• Tablet
• Handheld
• Personal Computers
• Notebook or Laptop

Supercomputers

• Supercomputers are the most powerful computers, used for problems requiring complex calculations.
• Due to their size and expense, supercomputers are rare.
• Used by universities, government agencies, and large businesses.
• Focus on faster computing for complex mathematical operations.

Supercomputers: SIMD Machines

• Single Instruction, Multiple Data (SIMD)

Supercomputers: MIMD Machines

• Multiple Instruction, Multiple Data (MIMD)
• Distributed Memory MIMD
• Shared Memory MIMD

Mainframe Computers

• Can support hundreds or thousands of users (Multiuser Machine), handling massive amounts of input, output, and storage.
• Used in large organizations where many users need access to shared data and programs.
• Also used as e-commerce servers, handling transactions over the Internet.
• Acts like a server, offering multiprogramming, many I/O devices, and support for large databases.

Minicomputers

• Smaller than mainframes but larger than microcomputers.
• Usually have multiple terminals.
• May be used as network servers and Internet servers.
• Standalone mid-sized machines that fall somewhere between mainframe and powerful microcomputers.

Workstations

• Powerful single-user computers.
• Used for tasks requiring a great deal of power, such as product design and computer animation.

Microcomputers, or Personal Computers (PC)

• Full-size desktop computers are the most common type of PC.
• Notebook (laptop) computers are used by people who need the power of a desktop system but also portability.
• Handheld PCs (such as PDAs) lack the power of a desktop or notebook PC but offer limited functions and small size.

Desktop Computers

• Small enough to fit on top of or alongside a desk but too big to carry around.

Notebook or Laptop Computers

• Portable, lightweight, and fit into most briefcases.

Tablet PC

• A type of notebook computer that accepts handwriting, which is digitized and converted to standard text.

Handhelds & Smart Phones

• Smallest, also known as palm computers.
• Combine pen input, writing recognition, personal organizational tools, and communications capabilities.
• Smart Phones are currently the most widely used handheld computers.

Primary Components and Operations

• RAM, ROM, PROM, EPROM
• Auxiliary Storage Devices: Magnetic Tape, Hard Disk, Floppy Disk
• Optical Disks: CD-R Drive, CD-RW disks, DVD, Blue ray Discs.

Input-Process-Output Model (IPO)

• Input: keyboard, mouse, scanner, punch cards
• Processing: CPU executes the computer program
• Output: monitor, printer, fax machine
• Storage: hard drive, optical media, diskettes, magnetic tape

What does a Computer Do?

• Computers perform four general operations, comprising the information processing cycle:
  • Input
  • Process
  • Output
  • Storage

Primary Components of a Computer

• Central Processing Unit (CPU)
  • Control Unit
  • Arithmetic Logic Unit
• Input Devices
• Memory
• Storage Devices
• Output Devices

Input Devices

• Keyboard
• Mouse
• Microphone
• Digital Camera
• Scanner

The Keyboard

• Most commonly used input device, data is entered by manually keying in or typing certain keys.
• Typically has 101 or 105 keys.

The Mouse

• Pointing device used to control the movement of a mouse pointer on the screen to make selections.
• Has one to five buttons.
• Flat bottom with a mechanism that detects movement.

Pointing devices - direct

• Touch screens

Touch screens

• Often used for applications with occasional use (e.g., Bank ATMs, Information Kiosks).
• No extra hardware - used for input and output.
• Can be precise to 1 pixel.
• Good for menu choice, not so good for other functions.
• Intuitive to use.

Microphones - Speech Recognition

• Use a microphone to talk to your computer.
• Add a sound card to your computer
• Sound card digitizes audio input into 0/1s.
• A speech recognition program can process the input and convert it into machine-recognized commands or input.

Audio Input: Speech Recognition

• Speech recognition is a type of input where the computer recognizes words spoken into a microphone.
• Special software and a microphone are required.
• Latest technology uses continuous speech recognition where the user does not have to pause between words.

Digital camera

• Stores many pictures depending on camera memory; pictures are transferred to a computer by connecting the camera to it.
• Takes pictures by converting the light passing through the lens into a digital image.

Scanner

• Used to input pictures and text into a computer.
• Two main types of scanner: Hand-held and Flat-bed.

The Central Processing Unit

• The central processing unit (CPU) contains electronic circuits that cause processing to occur.
• The CPU interprets instructions to the computer, performs logical and arithmetic processing operations, and causes the input and output operations to occur. It is considered the “brain” of the computer.

Memory

• Memory, also called Random Access Memory or RAM (temporary memory), is the main memory of the computer.
• It consists of electronic components that store data including numbers, letters of the alphabet, graphics, and sound.
• Any information stored in RAM is lost when the computer is turned off.

Read Only Memory

• Read Only Memory or ROM is memory that is etched on a chip that has start-up directions for your computer. It is permanent memory.

Output Types

• Text output
• Graphics output
• Video output
• Audio output

Output Devices

• Monitors

Monitors

• A monitor is a peripheral device that displays computer output on a screen.
• Screen output is referred to as soft copy.
• Types of monitors:
  • Cathode-ray tube (CRT)
  • Liquid Crystal Display (LCD or flat-panel)

Monitors

• CRT (obsolete)
  • cathode ray tube
    • electron gun shoots a stream of electrons at a specially phosphor-coated screen
    • on impact, the phosphor flares up for a fraction of a second
    • electron gun sweeps across the screen many times a second
• LCD / LED
  • liquid crystal display / light emitting diodes
    • one of several types of “flat-panel” displays
    • forms output by solidifying crystals and “backlighting” the image with a light source
  • LCD /LED is primarily used for Laptops/TVs and other portable devices

Types of Printers

• Inkjet
  • Inkjet printer, also called a bubble-jet, makes characters by inserting dots of ink onto paper.
    • Letter-quality printouts
    • Cost of printer is inexpensive but ink is costly
• Laser
  • Laser printer works like a copier
    • Quality determined by dots per inch (dpi) produced
    • Color printers available
    • Expensive initial costs but cheaper to operate per page

Plotter

• A plotter is a printer that uses a pen that moves over a large revolving sheet of paper.
• It is used in engineering, drafting, map making, and seismology.

Audio Output: Sound Cards and Speakers

• Audio output is the ability of the computer to output sound.
• Two components are needed:
  • Sound card – Plays contents of digitized recordings
  • Speakers – Attach to sound card

Basic Units Of Measurement

• Bit
  • Binary digit
  • Smallest unit of measurement
  • Two possible values 0 1 on OR off
• Byte
  • 8 bits

Small Units Of Measurement (Processor And Memory Speed)

• Millisecond (ms) – a thousandth of a second ($1/1,000 = 10^{-3}$)
• Microsecond (μs) - a millionth of a second ($1/1,000,000 = 10^{-6}$)
• Nanosecond (ns) – a billionth of a second ($1/1,000,000,000 = 10^{-9}$)

Large Units Of Measurement (Memory, Storage)

• Note: powers of two are used because computer memory and storage are based on the basic unit (bit).
• Kilobyte (KB) – a thousand bytes ($1,024 = 2^{10}$)
• Megabyte (MB) - a million ($1,048,576 = 2^{20}$) Kilo in decimal is $10^3 = 1000$ But we are using binary (base 2) so memory is represented as $2^n$ (n = # of bits) e.g. $2^9 = 512$

Large Units Of Measurement (Memory, Storage)

• Gigabyte (GB) – a billion ($1,073,741,824 = 2^{30}$)
  • ~ A complete set of encyclopedias requires about 700 MB of storage
  • ~ 30 minutes of video (1/4 of the information stored on a typical DVD) requires about 30 GB of storage

Large Units Of Measurement (Memory, Storage)

• Terabyte (TB) – a trillion ($1,099,511,627,776 = 2^{40}$)
  • ~ 20 million four-drawer filing cabinets full of text
  • ~ 200 DVD’s of information

Memory Devices

• Memory: Is one or more sets of chips that store data/program instructions, either temporarily or permanently .
• It is critical processing component in any computer
• PCs use several different types RAM,ROM,PROM,EPROM

Memory Devices

• Two most important are:
  • RAM(Random Access Memory)
  • ROM(Read-only Memory)
• They work in different ways and perform distinct functions
• CPU Registers
• Cache Memory

RAM

• RAM is packaged as a chip.
• Basic storage unit is a cell (one bit per cell).
• Multiple RAM chips form a memory.
• Random Access Memory Volatile Used for temporary storage Typical ranges 256 MB - 32 GB
• Random Access means direct access to any part of memory

Nonvolatile Memories(ROM)

• DRAM and SRAM are volatile memories
• Lose information if powered off.
• Nonvolatile memories retain value even if powered off.
• Generic name is read-only memory (ROM).
• Misleading because some ROMs can be read and modified.

Nonvolatile Memories(ROM)

• Types of ROMs
  • Programmable ROM (PROM)
  • Eraseable programmable ROM (EPROM)
  • Electrically eraseable PROM (EEPROM)
  • Flash memory (used in portable digital devices)
• Firmware (Program instruction used frequently)
• Program stored in a ROM
  • Boot time code, BIOS (basic input/output system)
  • graphics cards, disk controllers.

Storage Vs. Memory

• Memory (e.g., RAM)
  • Keep the information for a shorter period of time (usually volatile)
  • Faster
  • More expensive

Storage Vs. Memory

• Storage (e.g., Hard disk, SSD)
  • The information is retained longer (non-volatile)
  • Slower
  • Cheaper

Categories Of Storage

• Magnetic
  • Floppy disks
  • Zip disks
  • Hard drives
• Optical
  • CD-ROM
  • DVD
• Solid State Devices (SSD) storage
  • USB Flash memory (a common form of solid state device storage)

Magnetic Storage

• Exploits duality of magnetism and electricity
• Converts electrical signals into magnetic charges
• Captures magnetic charge on a storage medium
• Later regenerates electrical current from stored magnetic charge
• Polarity of magnetic charge represents bit values zero and one

Magnetic Disk

• Flat, circular platter with metallic coating that is rotated beneath read/write heads
• Random access device; read/write head can be moved to any location on the platter
• Hard disks and floppy disks
• Cost performance leader for general-purpose on-line secondary storage

Hard Disks

• Another form of auxiliary storage is a hard disk. A hard disk consists of one or more rigid metal plates coated with a metal oxide material that allows data to be magnetically recorded on the surface of the platters.
• The hard disk platters spin at a high rate of speed, typically 5400 to 7200 revolutions per minute (RPM).
• Storage capacities of hard disks for personal computers range from 256 GB to 10TB (one billion bytes are called a gigabyte).
• each track is divided into pie-shaped wedges sectors.
• two or more sectors combined are called cluster.
• data is recorded in concentric circular bands.

Optical Mass Storage Devices

• Store bit values as variations in light reflection
• Higher areal density & longer data life than magnetic storage
• Standardized and relatively inexpensive
• Uses: read-only storage with low performance requirements, applications with high capacity requirements & where portability in a standardized format is needed

Optical Drives

• CD's (Compact Disk) ~ 700 MB storage
  • CD-ROM (read only)
  • CD-R: (record) to a CD
  • CD-RW: can write and erase CD to reuse it (re-writable)
• DVD(Digital Video Disk)

Compact Discs (CD)

• A compact disk (CD), also called an optical disc, is a flat round, portable storage medium that is usually 4.75 inch in diameter.
• A CD-ROM (read only memory), is a compact disc that used the same laser technology as audio CDs for recording music. In addition it can contain other types of data such as text, graphics, and video.
• The capacity of a CD-ROM is 650 MB of data.

DVD (Digital Video Disk)

• DVD-ROM – Over 4 GB storage (varies with format)
  • DVD- ROM (read only)
  • Many recordable formats (e.g., DVD-R, DVD-RW; ..)
• Are more highly compact than a CD.
• Special laser is needed to read them

Blu-ray Technology

• Name Derived from the blue-violet laser used to read and write data.
• Developed by the Blu-ray Disc Association with more than 180 members.
  • Dell
  • Sony
  • LG

Blu-ray Technology Cont.

• Data capacity
• Because Blu-ray uses a blue laser(405 nanometers) instead of a red laser(650 nanometers) this allows the data tracks on the disc to be very compact.
• This allows for more than twice as small pits as on a DVD. $1 \text{ nanometer} = 10^{-9} \text{ of a meter}$

Blu-ray Technology Cont.

• BD-ROM (read-only) - for pre-recorded content
• BD-R (recordable) - for PC data storage
• BD-RW (rewritable) - for PC data storage
• BD-RE (rewritable) - for HDTV recording