4. Flynn’s taxonomy classifies computer architectures based on two properties. What are they?
Flynn's taxonomy, proposed by Michael J. Flynn in 1966, classifies computer architectures based on two properties: Instruction Stream and Data Stream. These properties describe the number of concurrent instructions and data streams that can be processed by a computer architecture. The two categories are as follows:
Instruction Stream: This property refers to the number of instructions processed simultaneously by the architecture. Flynn's taxonomy defines two possibilities:
Single Instruction, Single Data (SISD): In this category, the computer architecture executes a single instruction stream and operates on a single data stream at a time. This is the traditional sequential processing model found in most conventional computers, where each instruction is executed one after the other on a single set of data.
Data Stream: This property refers to the number of data streams processed simultaneously by the architecture. Flynn's taxonomy defines three possibilities:
Flynn's taxonomy provides a framework for categorizing computer architectures based on their instruction stream and data stream properties, allowing for a better understanding of different parallel processing models and their capabilities.