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CPU
The Central Processing Unit of a computer: Facts about CPUs
While the human head is estimated to weigh approximately seven pounds, the 'brain' of a modern computer is far tinier. CPU is the acronym for the Central Processing Unit of a computer. It is responsible for the executive functions of the computer. It interprets and then issues the "commands from the computer's hardware and software" (Fischer 2013). The CPU "has a program counter that points to the next instruction to be executed. It goes through a cycle where it retrieves, from memory, the instructions in the program counter. It then retrieves the required data from memory, performs the calculation indicated by the instruction and stores the result. The program counter is incremented to point to the next instruction and the cycle starts all over" (Davis 2005). Because it is responsible for all of the computer's instructions and calculations it is called a 'processing' unit and the fact that the CPU is located in the middle of most computers to keep its cables short is why it is 'central' (Davis...
(Fischer 2013). However, during the 1970s, this was not the case: computers were large, refrigerator-size units, due to the size of the complex machinery needed to govern their actions. "The CPU was a big pile of equipment. The thought that the CPU could be reduced to a chip of silicon the size of your fingernail was the stuff of science fiction" (Davis 2005). All of this changed with the revolutionary invention of the Intel Corporation in 1971. The first small CPU was designed for a business calculator that could be held in the palm of the user's hand. "The original 4004 microprocessor chip handled data in four bit chunks. Four bits gives you sixteen possible numbers, enough to handle standard decimal arithmetic for a calculator" (Davis 2005). The original four 'bit' microprocessor was eventually scaled up to 8. "In 1979, Intel delivered the 8088 and IBM engineers used it for the first PC. The combination of the new 16 bit microprocessor and the name IBM shifted the personal computer from a techie toy in the…
References
Computer hardware. (n.d.). Computer Hope Newsletter. Retrieved:
http://www.landley.net/history/mirror/intel/cpu.htm
Davis, Roy. (2005). Microprocessor history (part 1, the basics). Tech Tips, 54. Retrieved:
http://www.geeks.com/techtips/2005/techtips-NOV22-05.htm
http://pcsupport.about.com/od/insidethepc/ss/howitfits_3.htm
http://pcsupport.about.com/od/componentprofiles/p/p_cpu.htm
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