 What is
inside a microprocessor? It contains millions o f transistors that act
as switches to open or close electric circuits called gates. Computers use these
electrical circuits to represent numbers. For example, a switch may be either on or off.
Let’s say when the switch is off, it represents "0" and when the
switch is on it represents "1." One switch can store a single "bit" of
binary information. There are only the numbers "0" and "1" instead of
the numbers 1 through 10 that we use in our regular math. A group of eight
"bits" of information together form a byte.
How many number combinations (codes) are in a byte?
28 = 256 codes in a byte
Each one of these codes can mean a number, a letter, a punctuation mark, or other
symbols.
| X = |
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| Y = |
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Intel’s Pentium II is a 64-bit microprocessor. How many codes can you store in 64
bits?
Estimate the answer:
 Less than 1,000 codes
Between 1,000 and 10,000 codes
Over 10,000 codes
 
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