CDA 5155 is an introductory graduate-level
course in computer architecture. This course is intended to do two things: to
give you a solid, detailed understanding of how computers are designed and
implemented, including the central processor and memory and I/O interfaces; and
to make you aware of the numerous tradeoffs in design and implementation, their
interaction, their realization in both historical and state-of-the-art systems,
and trends that will affect them in future systems. We will cover instruction
set architectures, pipelining (including basic pipelining,
multiple-instruction-per-cycle machines, out-of-order instruction execution,
and vector processing), memory systems (including caches and virtual memory),
I/O interfaces, operating system issues, and basic multiprocessor systems.
We will also do case studies on
microprocessors and systems you may have used, perhaps including the P6
(Pentium Pro/II/III), Pentium 4, and the Sony PlayStation/2.
Textbooks:
Computer Architecture: A Quantitative Approach,
4th edition, by Hennessy and Patterson, Morgan Kaufman Publishers.
Course policies:
- This course is a lot of work. You will spend many long nights
debugging your processor at the end of the term. If you are registered for
other classes that may interfere with your ability to dedicate a lot of
time to this course, especially in the last few weeks, you should
reconsider your schedule.
- You are encouraged to interact with other students to discuss
course material, form study groups for the exams, and provide each
other with test case preparation, encouragement, and moral support.
However, all individual assignments (i.e., homeworks and exams) are
to be performed on your own, and all group assignments (i.e., the
project) are to be performed only by members of the group.
Grading
Programming Assignments 40%
Exams 35%
Project 25%
Academic Honor Code:
Students are expected to uphold the Academic Honor Code published in The
Florida State University Bulletin and the Student Handbook.
The Academic Honor System of The Florida State University is based
on the premise that each student has the responsibility (1) to uphold the
highest standards of academic integrity in the student's own work, (2)
to refuse to tolerate violations of academic integrity in the university
community, and (3) to foster a high sense of integrity and social
responsibility on the part of the university community.
Please see the following web site for a complete explanation of the
Academic Honor Code.
http://www.fsu.edu/Books/Student-Handbook/codes/honor.html
http://www.fsu.edu/Books/Student-Handbook/
Americans with Disabilities Act:
Students with disabilities needing academic accommodation should: (1)
register with and provide documentation to the
Student
Disability
Resource
Center; (2) bring a letter to the
instructor indicating the need for accommodation and what type. This should
be
done during the first week of class.
For more information about services available to FSU students with
disabilities, contact the
Student Disability Resource Center
Dean of Students Department
08 Kellum Hall
Florida State University
Tallahassee, FL 32306-4400
+1.850.644.9566 (voice)
+1.850.644.8504 (TDD)
SDRC@admin.fsu.edu
http://www.fsu.edu/~staffair/dean/StudentDisability/
(This syllabus and other class materials are available in alternative
format upon request.)