CSE 141 -- Introduction to Computer Architecture

Winter 2015, Instructor: Dean Tullsen

Related Web Page:

CSE 141L (Tullsen) web page

Basic Course Information:

• Instructor: Dean Tullsen
• CSE 3216
• tullsen at cs dot ucsd dot edu
• office hours: M 4, Tu 11, Th 1
• TA: Sriskanda (Skanda) Shamasunder
• office hours: M 11, Tu 3, W 12
• room: CSE B240A
• sshamasu at eng dot ucsd dot edu
• Meeting times and places
• Lecture: Pepper Canyon Hall 109, MWF 3:00-3:50
• discussion: Solis Hall 104, F 4-4:50
• Course textbook

Patterson & Hennessy, "Computer Organization and Design -- The Hardware/Software Interface", Morgan Kaufmann, Fifth Edition

• Other recommended reading
• Hennesy & Patterson, "Computer Architecture: A Quantitative Approach", Morgan Kaufmann
• a more advanced treatment of many of the same topics in the textbook, as well as a lot more breadth.
• Synthesis Lectures on Computer Architecture
• This contains a number of truly outstanding (and very recent and up-to-date) books on computer architecture, any of which you can download free while in the UCSD domain. In particular, see the books on Processor Microarchitecture (most useful for this class), Performance Evaluation Methods, Memory System, and Multithreading Architectures.
• Assignments:
• You will always have at least a week to do homework assignments.  When seeking help from instructor and TA, avoid the crowds and come early.  Office hours are crowded and less effective right before an assignment is due. Also, think about coming after an assignment is due (or returned) to clear up mistakes, etc.
• Homework assignments must be typed (typeset).
• Everyone in the class is expected to be on Piazza. Please sign up (if not already) here: sign up, and access the course page here: course page.
• I will try to make copies of selected slides available to you before class online in pdf format.   The slides will not be complete, but will make a nice start to your own notetaking.  In general, look for them early morning the day of class. I will post the slides on Piazza. You will find them fairly essential for decent note-taking.

Course Outline:

I. Instruction Set Architecture

II. Computer System Performance and Performance Metrics

III. Computer Arithmetic and Number Systems

IV. CPU Architecture

V. Pipelining

VI. Superscalars

VII. The Memory/Cache Hierarchy

VIII. Multicores, Multithreading, and Multiprocessors

Grading Information:

• The grade for 141 will be based on homeworks, two midterms, and a final, as follows:
• homeworks: 15%
• midterms: 40%
• final: 45%
• subjective influences like class participation will have an impact in the margins -- it does pay to let the professor know who you are!
• The final will be inclusive of all course material.
• Late assignments are not encouraged. You will have two grace days during the quarter. I.e., you can turn one assignment in two days late, or two assignments in one day late. I recommend not spending those days frivolously early in the quarter. After you have spent your grace days, late assignments will be accepted, but with no guarantees that they will be graded, and with significant penalties if they are. We will make every effort to return assignments to you in a timely manner -- limiting your ability to turn things in late is, unfortunately, critical to that goal.  Anytime after the end of class counts as a day late.  The second day begins 24 hours later. 
• You have the right of appeal for grading on all tests. You have one week from the time the midterms are returned to make appeals, including addition errors on your score. Check it over carefully when you get it. All appeals must be made in writing and given to the instructor.
• There is no appeal on homeworks, except for addition errors. No single problem will have a significant impact on your grade.
• We will use gradesource to record homework grades, at least. This will not be a tool to estimate your final grade, etc. It is only there so you can check that we have entered your grades correctly. Please do so -- we don't want to make mistakes. We will use Piazza to post homework solutions and lecture slides.

Integrity:

• Cheating WILL be taken seriously. It is not fair to honest students to take cheating lightly, nor is it fair to the cheater to let him/her go on thinking that is a reasonable alternative in life. Don't test me on this one.
• The following is not considered cheating:
  • discussing homework in groups (with the writeup done separately, later).
• The following is:
  • discussing homework with someone who has already completed the problem, or looking at their completed write-up.
  • using hw solutions from the web, previous versions of the class, or anywhere else.
  • Receiving, providing, or soliciting assistance from another student during a test.
• Homework is not intended to be a grade-maker, but to prepare you for the tests, which are the grade-makers. Cheating on the homeworks is just stupid.
• Penalties -- anyone copying information or having information copied during a test will receive an F for the class and will not be allowed to drop.  They will be reported to their college dean.  If you can prove non-cooperative copying took place, your grade may be restored, but you must prove it to the dean -- I don't want to be involved.  Anyone caught cheating on the homework will not be allowed to turn in further homework.  Your grade will be based exclusively on the tests (with a suitable penalty applied) -- it will be roughly 50% final, 45% midterm, 5% homework (zero).