Computer Architecture - 20022

Students taking these two courses will connect the practical experience and knowledge gained through creating electronic circuits with a theoretical understanding of how data are stored and transmitted within the structure of a computer.

COMP 220  focuses on the workings of a computer at a relatively high level, looking primarily at how data in binary form (0s and 1s) are transmitted through circuits, from memory through the CPU to arrive at an answer. In order to represent this, we use the notion of a series of “black boxes” to describe what happens to the data in each component. In PHYS 110  (a laboratory-based course), students actually build these “black boxes” and see how the electronic components work. This hands-on approach will give students a much deeper understanding of the components that are discussed at a higher level in the computer science course.