Sarah L. Harris and David Money Harris Digital Design and ComputerPage
Architecture
1 ARM Edition Solution manual 2026-04-11
Sarah L. Harris and David Money Harris Digital Design and Computer Architecture: ARM Edition © Elsevier 2015
SOLUTIONS
Sarah L. Harris and David Money
SarahHarris
L. Harris
Digital
andDesign
David and
Money
Computer
Harris Digital
Architecture
1 DesignARM
and Edition
ComputerSolution
Architecture
manual.pdf
ARM Edition Solution manual.pdf
,Sarah L. Harris and David Money Harris Digital Design and ComputerPage
Architecture
2 ARM Edition Solution manual 2026-04-11
Sarah L. Harris and David Money Harris Digital Design and Computer Architecture: ARM Edition © 2015 Elsevier, Inc.
SOLUTIONS 1
CHAPTER 1
Exercise 1.1
(a) Biologists study cells at many levels. The cells are built from organelles
such as the mitochondria, ribosomes, and chloroplasts. Organelles are built of
macromolecules such as proteins, lipids, nucleic acids, and carbohydrates.
These biochemical macromolecules are built simpler molecules such as carbon
chains and amino acids. When studying at one of these levels of abstraction, bi-
ologists are usually interested in the levels above and below: what the structures
at that level are used to build, and how the structures themselves are built.
(b) The fundamental building blocks of chemistry are electrons, protons,
and neutrons (physicists are interested in how the protons and neutrons are
built). These blocks combine to form atoms. Atoms combine to form molecules.
For example, when chemists study molecules, they can abstract away the lower
levels of detail so that they can describe the general properties of a molecule
such as benzene without having to calculate the motion of the individual elec-
trons in the molecule.
Exercise 1.2
(a) Automobile designers use hierarchy to construct a car from major as-
semblies such as the engine, body, and suspension. The assemblies are con-
structed from subassemblies; for example, the engine contains cylinders, fuel
injectors, the ignition system, and the drive shaft. Modularity allows compo-
nents to be swapped without redesigning the rest of the car; for example, the
seats can be cloth, leather, or leather with a built in heater depending on the
model of the vehicle, so long as they all mount to the body in the same place.
Regularity involves the use of interchangeable parts and the sharing of parts be-
tween different vehicles; a 65R14 tire can be used on many different cars.
Sarah L. Harris and David Money
SarahHarris
L. Harris
Digital
andDesign
David and
Money
Computer
Harris Digital
Architecture
2 DesignARM
and Edition
ComputerSolution
Architecture
manual.pdf
ARM Edition Solution manual.pdf
,Sarah L. Harris and David Money Harris Digital Design and ComputerPage
Architecture
3 ARM Edition Solution manual 2026-04-11
© 2015 Elsevier, Inc.
2 SOLUTIONS chapter 1
(b) Businesses use hierarchy in their organization chart. An employee re-
ports to a manager, who reports to a general manager who reports to a vice pres-
ident who reports to the president. Modularity includes well-defined interfaces
between divisions. The salesperson who spills a coke in his laptop calls a single
number for technical support and does not need to know the detailed organiza-
tion of the information systems department. Regularity includes the use of stan-
dard procedures. Accountants follow a well-defined set of rules to calculate
profit and loss so that the finances of each division can be combined to deter-
mine the finances of the company and so that the finances of the company can
be reported to investors who can make a straightforward comparison with other
companies.
Exercise 1.3
Ben can use a hierarchy to design the house. First, he can decide how many
bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchens, and other rooms he would like. He can then
jump up a level of hierarchy to decide the overall layout and dimensions of the
house. At the top-level of the hierarchy, he material he would like to use, what
kind of roof, etc. He can then jump to an even lower level of hierarchy to decide
the specific layout of each room, where he would like to place the doors, win-
dows, etc. He can use the principle of regularity in planning the framing of the
house. By using the same type of material, he can scale the framing depending
on the dimensions of each room. He can also use regularity to choose the same
(or a small set of) doors and windows for each room. That way, when he places
a new door or window he need not redesign the size, material, layout specifica-
tions from scratch. This is also an example of modularity: once he has designed
the specifications for the windows in one room, for example, he need not re-
specify them when he uses the same windows in another room. This will save
him both design time and, thus, money. He could also save by buying some
items (like windows) in bulk.
Exercise 1.4
An accuracy of +/- 50 mV indicates that the signal can be resolved to 100
mV intervals. There are 50 such intervals in the range of 0-5 volts, so the signal
represents log250 = 5.64 bits of information.
Exercise 1.5
(a) The hour hand can be resolved to 12 * 4 = 48 positions, which represents
log248 = 5.58 bits of information. (b) Knowing whether it is before or after noon
adds one more bit.
Sarah L. Harris and David Money
SarahHarris
L. Harris
Digital
andDesign
David and
Money
Computer
Harris Digital
Architecture
3 DesignARM
and Edition
ComputerSolution
Architecture
manual.pdf
ARM Edition Solution manual.pdf
, Sarah L. Harris and David Money Harris Digital Design and ComputerPage
Architecture
4 ARM Edition Solution manual 2026-04-11
Sarah L. Harris and David Money Harris Digital Design and Computer Architecture: ARM Edition © 2015 Elsevier, Inc.
SOLUTIONS 3
Exercise 1.6
Each digit conveys log260 = 5.91 bits of information. 400010 = 1 6 4060 (1
in the 3600 column, 6 in the 60’s column, and 40 in the 1’s column).
Exercise 1.7
216 = 65,536 numbers.
Exercise 1.8
232-1 = 4,294,967,295
Exercise 1.9
(a) 216-1 = 65535; (b) 215-1 = 32767; (c) 215-1 = 32767
Exercise 1.10
(a) 232-1 = 4,294,967,295; (b) 231-1 = 2,147,483,647; (c) 231-1 =
2,147,483,647
Exercise 1.11
(a) 0; (b) -215 = -32768; (c) -(215-1) = -32767
Exercise 1.12
(a) 0; (b) -231 = -2,147,483,648; (c) -(231-1) = -2,147,483,647;
Exercise 1.13
(a) 10; (b) 54; (c) 240; (d) 2215
Exercise 1.14
(a) 14; (b) 36; (c) 215; (d) 15,012
Exercise 1.15
(a) A; (b) 36; (c) F0; (d) 8A7
Sarah L. Harris and David Money
SarahHarris
L. Harris
Digital
andDesign
David and
Money
Computer
Harris Digital
Architecture
4 DesignARM
and Edition
ComputerSolution
Architecture
manual.pdf
ARM Edition Solution manual.pdf
Architecture
1 ARM Edition Solution manual 2026-04-11
Sarah L. Harris and David Money Harris Digital Design and Computer Architecture: ARM Edition © Elsevier 2015
SOLUTIONS
Sarah L. Harris and David Money
SarahHarris
L. Harris
Digital
andDesign
David and
Money
Computer
Harris Digital
Architecture
1 DesignARM
and Edition
ComputerSolution
Architecture
manual.pdf
ARM Edition Solution manual.pdf
,Sarah L. Harris and David Money Harris Digital Design and ComputerPage
Architecture
2 ARM Edition Solution manual 2026-04-11
Sarah L. Harris and David Money Harris Digital Design and Computer Architecture: ARM Edition © 2015 Elsevier, Inc.
SOLUTIONS 1
CHAPTER 1
Exercise 1.1
(a) Biologists study cells at many levels. The cells are built from organelles
such as the mitochondria, ribosomes, and chloroplasts. Organelles are built of
macromolecules such as proteins, lipids, nucleic acids, and carbohydrates.
These biochemical macromolecules are built simpler molecules such as carbon
chains and amino acids. When studying at one of these levels of abstraction, bi-
ologists are usually interested in the levels above and below: what the structures
at that level are used to build, and how the structures themselves are built.
(b) The fundamental building blocks of chemistry are electrons, protons,
and neutrons (physicists are interested in how the protons and neutrons are
built). These blocks combine to form atoms. Atoms combine to form molecules.
For example, when chemists study molecules, they can abstract away the lower
levels of detail so that they can describe the general properties of a molecule
such as benzene without having to calculate the motion of the individual elec-
trons in the molecule.
Exercise 1.2
(a) Automobile designers use hierarchy to construct a car from major as-
semblies such as the engine, body, and suspension. The assemblies are con-
structed from subassemblies; for example, the engine contains cylinders, fuel
injectors, the ignition system, and the drive shaft. Modularity allows compo-
nents to be swapped without redesigning the rest of the car; for example, the
seats can be cloth, leather, or leather with a built in heater depending on the
model of the vehicle, so long as they all mount to the body in the same place.
Regularity involves the use of interchangeable parts and the sharing of parts be-
tween different vehicles; a 65R14 tire can be used on many different cars.
Sarah L. Harris and David Money
SarahHarris
L. Harris
Digital
andDesign
David and
Money
Computer
Harris Digital
Architecture
2 DesignARM
and Edition
ComputerSolution
Architecture
manual.pdf
ARM Edition Solution manual.pdf
,Sarah L. Harris and David Money Harris Digital Design and ComputerPage
Architecture
3 ARM Edition Solution manual 2026-04-11
© 2015 Elsevier, Inc.
2 SOLUTIONS chapter 1
(b) Businesses use hierarchy in their organization chart. An employee re-
ports to a manager, who reports to a general manager who reports to a vice pres-
ident who reports to the president. Modularity includes well-defined interfaces
between divisions. The salesperson who spills a coke in his laptop calls a single
number for technical support and does not need to know the detailed organiza-
tion of the information systems department. Regularity includes the use of stan-
dard procedures. Accountants follow a well-defined set of rules to calculate
profit and loss so that the finances of each division can be combined to deter-
mine the finances of the company and so that the finances of the company can
be reported to investors who can make a straightforward comparison with other
companies.
Exercise 1.3
Ben can use a hierarchy to design the house. First, he can decide how many
bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchens, and other rooms he would like. He can then
jump up a level of hierarchy to decide the overall layout and dimensions of the
house. At the top-level of the hierarchy, he material he would like to use, what
kind of roof, etc. He can then jump to an even lower level of hierarchy to decide
the specific layout of each room, where he would like to place the doors, win-
dows, etc. He can use the principle of regularity in planning the framing of the
house. By using the same type of material, he can scale the framing depending
on the dimensions of each room. He can also use regularity to choose the same
(or a small set of) doors and windows for each room. That way, when he places
a new door or window he need not redesign the size, material, layout specifica-
tions from scratch. This is also an example of modularity: once he has designed
the specifications for the windows in one room, for example, he need not re-
specify them when he uses the same windows in another room. This will save
him both design time and, thus, money. He could also save by buying some
items (like windows) in bulk.
Exercise 1.4
An accuracy of +/- 50 mV indicates that the signal can be resolved to 100
mV intervals. There are 50 such intervals in the range of 0-5 volts, so the signal
represents log250 = 5.64 bits of information.
Exercise 1.5
(a) The hour hand can be resolved to 12 * 4 = 48 positions, which represents
log248 = 5.58 bits of information. (b) Knowing whether it is before or after noon
adds one more bit.
Sarah L. Harris and David Money
SarahHarris
L. Harris
Digital
andDesign
David and
Money
Computer
Harris Digital
Architecture
3 DesignARM
and Edition
ComputerSolution
Architecture
manual.pdf
ARM Edition Solution manual.pdf
, Sarah L. Harris and David Money Harris Digital Design and ComputerPage
Architecture
4 ARM Edition Solution manual 2026-04-11
Sarah L. Harris and David Money Harris Digital Design and Computer Architecture: ARM Edition © 2015 Elsevier, Inc.
SOLUTIONS 3
Exercise 1.6
Each digit conveys log260 = 5.91 bits of information. 400010 = 1 6 4060 (1
in the 3600 column, 6 in the 60’s column, and 40 in the 1’s column).
Exercise 1.7
216 = 65,536 numbers.
Exercise 1.8
232-1 = 4,294,967,295
Exercise 1.9
(a) 216-1 = 65535; (b) 215-1 = 32767; (c) 215-1 = 32767
Exercise 1.10
(a) 232-1 = 4,294,967,295; (b) 231-1 = 2,147,483,647; (c) 231-1 =
2,147,483,647
Exercise 1.11
(a) 0; (b) -215 = -32768; (c) -(215-1) = -32767
Exercise 1.12
(a) 0; (b) -231 = -2,147,483,648; (c) -(231-1) = -2,147,483,647;
Exercise 1.13
(a) 10; (b) 54; (c) 240; (d) 2215
Exercise 1.14
(a) 14; (b) 36; (c) 215; (d) 15,012
Exercise 1.15
(a) A; (b) 36; (c) F0; (d) 8A7
Sarah L. Harris and David Money
SarahHarris
L. Harris
Digital
andDesign
David and
Money
Computer
Harris Digital
Architecture
4 DesignARM
and Edition
ComputerSolution
Architecture
manual.pdf
ARM Edition Solution manual.pdf
