Engineers · Ages 16–18· 32-bit

How a CPU Works

You have adders and you have memory. Join them with a clock and a few control wires and you get a machine that follows instructions. Single-step a complete 8-bit computer, read its machine code, and see how one jump instruction creates loops and decisions.

2 lessons 26 min 130 XP

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Lessons

1⚙️Fetch, decode, executeA processor reads an instruction from memory, works out what it means, does it, and moves to the next one.13 min65 XP
2↩️Jumps, loops and assemblyA jump changes the program counter. A conditional jump does it only if a test passes. Loops and ifs are made of nothing else.13 min65 XP