CS 8621 Syllabus

Required Material

• John L. Hennessy and David A. Patterson, Computer Architecture: A Quantitative Approach, 3rd ed., Morgan Kaufmann, 2003.

Topics and Readings

• Fundamentals of Computer Design: Chapter 1
• Instruction Set Principles and Examples: Chapter 2
• Instruction-Level Parallelism and Its Dynamic Exploitation: Chapter 3
• Exploiting Instruction-Level Parallelism with Software Approaches: Chapter 4
• Memory hierarchy Design: Chapter 5
• Multiprocessors and Thread-Level Parallelism: Chapter 6
• Storage Systems: Chapter 7
• Interconnection Networks and Clusters: Chapter 8

Grading Basis

Midterm Exam 1	Ch. 1-4	30%
Midterm Exam 2	Ch. 5-8	30%
Assignments (8)		10%
Presentations		15%
Final Exam	All	15%

Exam Dates

Midterm Exam 1	Thursday, February 17
Midterm Exam 2	Tuesday, April 12
Final Exam	Monday, May 9, 2:00--3:55

CS 8621 Policies

• Assigned reading should be done before coming to class on that day.
• Assignments will be collected at the beginning of class on the due date. Late assignments will be penalized 25 percent per day.
• Exams will not be given early, and makeups are not allowed except in very dire circumstances, e.g., severe illness or death in the family. In any case, I must be informed in advance of the scheduled exam time.
• Individuals who have any disability, either permanent or temporary, that might affect their ability to perform in this class are encouraged to inform the instructor at the start of the quarter. Adaptation of methods, materials, or testing may be made as required to provide for equitable participation.