Operating System

Operating System (OS)  is a group of computer programs that link all the activities among computer hardware devices.  It’s software program that acts as an interface between human user and the computer.

 

The arrows between operating system to hardware and human user show the communications of them.

• The operating system interacts with hardware such as turn on and turn off, and also response to other system software as well.
• The hardware communicate back to operating system and other system software.
• Other system software response to hardware and operating system too.
• The operating system interact with application software. And also able to interact with human users directly.
• Application software and human user interact with each others by sending and receiving information with each other.

Memory Management: it’s the system to manage the memory. Its function is to keep  track pf the status of each memory location. It determines how memory is allocated among competing processes, and deciding who gets memory, and how much they are allowed.

Process Management: this system manage things in the process of OS, it share and exchange the information in each process.

CPU scheduling: its function is to manage the time programs running. It tells the time for programs to start and stop running.

Von Neumann architecture and Fetch-Execute Cycle

Von Neumann Architecture

• Input Device: is the device that receive the data or instruction from outside world into the computer for display, storage, processing, or outputting. For example keyboard, mouse, scanner, etc.
• Central Processing Unit (CPU): is considered as the brain of the computer. It’s the hardware that carries out the instructions of a computer program by performing the basic arithmetical, logical, and input/output operations of the system. It has 2 parts which are Control Unit, and Arithmetic Logic Unit.
• Control Unit: it acts like a manager in the CPU which responsible for translate and decode input and output device.
• Arithmetic Logic Unit (ALU): is the part of a computer processor that perform all arithmetic computation, such as addiction,  subtraction, and all comparison operation that the Control Unit sends to it.
• Memory Unit: this unit holds both data and instructions, and supplies information to the other units of the computer when needed. It also serves as a temporary storage. For example RAM.
• Output Device: is a device that send out the results stored in the computer memory to the outside world. For example monitor, printer, etc.

Fetch-Execute Cycle

 

• Step 1: The information/instruction  stored in the main memory are fetches by the fetch cycle in the control unit.
• Step 2: In the control unit, it then decode the instruction by making them more readable by the machine.
• Step 3: The data is send to the ALU which is the execution cycle. After get the data, it executes the instruction.
• Step 4: The output results will be saved into main memory.

Google: self-driving cars safer than professional drivers

Summary

Chris Urmson, the Google director of self-driving car had proved that the data collected from Google’s self-driving Lexus and Prius cars reveal that the cars are better drivers than any human driver. The cars could be able to driven over 482,700 kilometers without causing any accident. He also said that the car could drive more smoothly and safely than the trained professional drivers, it could also keep a safe distance with other cars. Until now, there were only 2 incidents happen on the Google’s self-driving cars, And both incident were the cause by human drivers.

Major Concept

The Google’s self-driving car was hold in the RoboBusiness  robotics conference in California.

Self-driving car is safer and cause less incident than human driver.

Self-driving car could drive smoothly and maintain good distance with other cars.

So far, the self-driving car just involved in 2 incidents, and both were cause by human drivers.

Potential Strength/Advantage

The article is very interesting. We could see that nowadays, the technology has improve so much that it was getting better than human.

The author had list out the advantages of the self-driving car. It says that the car is safer, drive smoothly, maintain safe distance behind other cars, and cause less incident. This could give readers the positive idea about the cars.

The author include image of the self-driving car, which make reader get the better image of how does it look like.

Potential Problem/Disadvantage

It would be better if the article would include some videos and more pictures about the topic.

The article could add more detail about the car to make the readers understand it more.

Discussion Question

I would like to know more detail about the self-driving car such as how does it work, what is the price, etc.

 

Citation

Starr, Michelle. “Google: Self-driving Cars Safer than Professional Drivers.” – Cars. N.p., 28 Oct. 2013. Web. 01 Nov. 2013.