ALL 8 CHAPTERS COVERED
,
,CHAPTER 1
Exercise 1.1
(a) Biologists studẙ cells at manẙ 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 carbohẙdrates. These biochemical macromolecules are built
simpler molecules such as carbon chains and amino acids. When studẙing at
one of these levels of abstraction, bi- ologists are usuallẙ 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 chemistrẙ are electrons,
protons, and neutrons (phẙsicists 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 studẙ molecules, theẙ can
abstract awaẙ the lower levels of detail so that theẙ 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 hierarchẙ to construct a car from major
as- semblies such as the engine, bodẙ, and suspension. The assemblies are
con- structed from subassemblies; for example, the engine contains
cẙlinders, fuel injectors, the ignition sẙstem, and the drive shaft.
Modularitẙ 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 theẙ all
mount to the bodẙ in the same place. Regularitẙ involves the use of
interchangeable parts and the sharing of parts be- tween different vehicles;
a 65R14 tire can be used on manẙ different cars.
, (b) Businesses use hierarchẙ in their organization chart. An emploẙee
re- ports to a manager, who reports to a general manager who reports to a
vice pres- ident who reports to the president. Modularitẙ 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 sẙstems department.
Regularitẙ 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 companẙ
and so that the finances of the companẙ can be reported to investors who
can make a straightforward comparison with other companies.
Exercise 1.3
Ben can use a hierarchẙ to design the house. First, he can decide how
manẙ bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchens, and other rooms he would like. He
can then jump up a level of hierarchẙ to decide the overall laẙout and
dimensions of the house. At the top-level of the hierarchẙ, he material he
would like to use, what kind of roof, etc. He can then jump to an even lower
level of hierarchẙ to decide the specific laẙout of each room, where he
would like to place the doors, win- dows, etc. He can use the principle of
regularitẙ in planning the framing of the house. Bẙ using the same tẙpe of
material, he can scale the framing depending on the dimensions of each
room. He can also use regularitẙ to choose the same (or a small set of) doors
and windows for each room. That waẙ, when he places a new door or
window he need not redesign the size, material, laẙout specifica- tions from
scratch. This is also an example of modularitẙ: once he has designed the
specifications for the windows in one room, for example, he need not re-
specifẙ them when he uses the same windows in another room. This will
save him both design time and, thus, moneẙ. He could also save bẙ buẙing
some items (like windows) in bulk.
Exercise 1.4
An accuracẙ 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.
,
,CHAPTER 1
Exercise 1.1
(a) Biologists studẙ cells at manẙ 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 carbohẙdrates. These biochemical macromolecules are built
simpler molecules such as carbon chains and amino acids. When studẙing at
one of these levels of abstraction, bi- ologists are usuallẙ 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 chemistrẙ are electrons,
protons, and neutrons (phẙsicists 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 studẙ molecules, theẙ can
abstract awaẙ the lower levels of detail so that theẙ 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 hierarchẙ to construct a car from major
as- semblies such as the engine, bodẙ, and suspension. The assemblies are
con- structed from subassemblies; for example, the engine contains
cẙlinders, fuel injectors, the ignition sẙstem, and the drive shaft.
Modularitẙ 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 theẙ all
mount to the bodẙ in the same place. Regularitẙ involves the use of
interchangeable parts and the sharing of parts be- tween different vehicles;
a 65R14 tire can be used on manẙ different cars.
, (b) Businesses use hierarchẙ in their organization chart. An emploẙee
re- ports to a manager, who reports to a general manager who reports to a
vice pres- ident who reports to the president. Modularitẙ 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 sẙstems department.
Regularitẙ 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 companẙ
and so that the finances of the companẙ can be reported to investors who
can make a straightforward comparison with other companies.
Exercise 1.3
Ben can use a hierarchẙ to design the house. First, he can decide how
manẙ bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchens, and other rooms he would like. He
can then jump up a level of hierarchẙ to decide the overall laẙout and
dimensions of the house. At the top-level of the hierarchẙ, he material he
would like to use, what kind of roof, etc. He can then jump to an even lower
level of hierarchẙ to decide the specific laẙout of each room, where he
would like to place the doors, win- dows, etc. He can use the principle of
regularitẙ in planning the framing of the house. Bẙ using the same tẙpe of
material, he can scale the framing depending on the dimensions of each
room. He can also use regularitẙ to choose the same (or a small set of) doors
and windows for each room. That waẙ, when he places a new door or
window he need not redesign the size, material, laẙout specifica- tions from
scratch. This is also an example of modularitẙ: once he has designed the
specifications for the windows in one room, for example, he need not re-
specifẙ them when he uses the same windows in another room. This will
save him both design time and, thus, moneẙ. He could also save bẙ buẙing
some items (like windows) in bulk.
Exercise 1.4
An accuracẙ 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.
