Course Info
| Lectures | Mon. & Wed. 3:00 - 4:20 PM in Porter Hall A18B |
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| Web Page | http://www.ece.cmu.edu/~ece742/ |
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| Email list | ece742-official /at/ ece.cmu.edu |
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| Instructor | Babak Falsafi |
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| Email, URL | babak /at/ cmu.edu, http://www.ece.cmu.edu/~babak/ |
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| Office | Hamerschlag A305 |
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| Phone | 412-268-7047 |
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| Office Hours | Mon. 2PM-3PM, Thu. 1PM-2PM |
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| TA | Mike Ferdman |
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| Email, URL | mferdman /at/ ece.cmu.edu, http://www.ece.cmu.edu/~mferdman/ |
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| Office | Hamerschlag A300, Cube A9 |
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| Phone | 412-268-7293 |
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| Office Hours | Tue. 2PM |
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| TA | Jangwoo Kim |
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| Email, URL | jangwook /at/ ece.cmu.edu, http://www.ece.cmu.edu/~jangwook/ |
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| Office | Hamerschlag A300, Cube A12 |
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| Phone | 412-268-5289 |
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| Office Hours | Thu. 3PM |
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| Admin. Assistant | Matt Koeske |
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| Email | koeske /at/ ece.cmu.edu |
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| Office | Hamerschlag A302 |
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| Phone | 412-268-7293 |
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Attendance
You are responsible for all the material covered in class including the Text
chapters, handouts, and class notes. If you are unable to appear for an exam
for any reason, you must contact Prof. Falsafi before the exam.
Description
What is multiprocessor computer architecture?
Multiprocessor computer architecture seeks to build computer systems from
individual processing elements, while balancing performance, cost, and
programmability. This course qualitatively and quantitatively examines
multiprocessor design trade-offs. We will study, for example, parallel
programming models, symmetric multiprocessors, distributed shared memory, and
interconnection networks. 18-742's goal is to educate the student in the
history and future trends of multiprocessor computer architecture.
Who should take 18-742?
18-742 is a
graduate course and is best suited for graduate and
fifth-year IMB students. Like other graduate-level courses, the course will
include weekly readings, discussions, and student reviews and reports on
publications (besides the text book) of seminal and recent contributions to the
field of computer architecture. Student reviews, class discussions, and an
independent research project will account for a significant fraction of the
grade. Like other graduate-level courses, feedback on performance will be given
only upon request by a student. There will be no recitation classes.
The course will also include an independent and original research project,
in which students study, improve, and evaluate multiprocessor innovations using
a software simulation infrastructure. There will be a list of project ideas
given out, but students can suggest and work on their own ideas with potentials
for advancing the state of the art.
What knowledge does 18-742 assume?
18-742 assumes that you are familiar with the material covered in 18-741.
Homework & Paper Review
All assignments will be available on the course home page. Your solutions to
the assigned problems are due at the beginning of the class period on the
specified due date. Prof. Falsafi does not accept late homework. There are two
types of homework problems. The first type would be in the form of assignments
from the end of the chapters or word problems. The second type will be brief
reviews of papers from the reader. The review format will be described prior to
assignment.
Project
There will be a research project due at the end of the semester. The project
handout will be distributed by the end of the fourth week of classes. The
project topics will be ongoing research issues in the computer architecture
community. You will have to find a project partner and conduct research in
groups of two. The project will account for a substantial fraction of the
overall grade.
Tools
Information forthcoming.
Grading
A tentative breakdown of grade is given below. All grades will be available
through an automated system accessible online through the class web page.
| Project | 30% |
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| Homework/Review | 20% |
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| Exam 1 | 25% |
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| Exam 2 | 25% |
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| Participation & Discussion | Counts |
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Academic Honesty
There is no tolerance for academic dishonesty. Please refer to the University
Policy on cheating and plagiarism. Discussion and group studies are encouraged
by all submitted material must be the student's individual work (or in case of
the project group work).
