Von Neumann Architecture Quiz (GCSE AQA)

What is the key characteristic of a von Neumann architecture?

• Multiple control units

• High-speed memory

• Changeable programs

• Fixed programs

Imagine you are a computer processor. Which register would you refer to find the memory address of the next instruction you need to execute?

• Program Counter

• Memory Address Register

• Data Register

• Accumulator

John is building a computer. What is the purpose of the arithmetic logic unit in his computer?

• To hold the program instructions John will install

• To store the data John will save in memory

• To perform the calculations John's computer will need to do

• To synchronize the components John has assembled

Imagine you are a computer processor executing a program. During the fetch stage, what would you check to determine the address of the next instruction to execute?

• Program Counter

• Memory Address Register

• Data Register

• Accumulator

Imagine you're a computer engineer working on a CPU. What would be the purpose of the cache in the CPU in this context?

• To hold the blueprint of the CPU

• To store the engineer's tools

• To perform the engineer's calculations

• To speed up access to frequently used data in the CPU's operations

What does the control unit do in the fetch-execute cycle?

• Fetches instructions from memory

• Decodes instructions

• Executes instructions

• Updates the program counter

What is the purpose of the memory address register?

• To hold the address of the next instruction

• To hold the address of data in memory

• To hold the result of calculations

• To hold the contents of the accumulator

What is the result of the calculation 12 + 23?

• 12

• 23

• 35

• 1223

Imagine you are a computer. What happens in the last stage of your fetch-execute cycle?

• You fetch instructions from memory

• You decode the instructions

• You execute the instructions

• You update the program counter

Imagine you're working on a computer based on the von Neumann architecture. What would you expect to find stored in its memory?

• Both instructions for tasks and data to be processed

• Only instructions for tasks

• Only data to be processed

• Cache memory