Learning Outcomes

This page collects together all of the “outcomes” associated with individual modules. Outcomes identify what students will know and be able to do if they master the material.

The course-specific student learning outcomes (SLOs) this this course are:

Students understand the underlying principle behind machine-level data representations, computing, and programming.
Students are proficient with assembly programming for the x86 architecture, including register operations, control structures, bitwise operations, and subprograms.
Students understand the underlying principles behind compiling, linking, loading, and debugging.
Students gain some hands-on experience with developing a small compiler.

The student learning outcomes (SLOs) for this course that are part of the SLOs for the entire Computer Science program, are:

[A] Students can apply knowledge of computing and mathematics appropriate to the discipline.
[B] Students can analyze a problem, and identify and define the computing requirements appropriate to its solution
[C] Students can design, implement, and evaluate a computer-based system, process, component, or program to meet desired needs
[I] Students can use current techniques, skills, and tools necessary for computing practice

Computer Architecture

Develop a sense of the historical developments that have led to the computers we have today
Understand the principle of the Von Neuman architecture
Understand the concept of an Instruction Set Architecture (ISA)

Referencing modules: Computer Architecture

Computers and Numbers

Master conversions between bases and additions in different bases
Understand how integers are stored in computers, differentiating unsigned and signed numbers
Understand how to do size conversions of numbers
Understand numerical overflow

Referencing modules: Data Size & Arithmetic, Integers & Computers

Assessed by:

X86 architecture

Understand the history and significance of the X86 architecture
Know the X86 registers
Understand the concept of segmenting

Referencing modules: X86 & NASM

NASM: data and bss

Understand the directives to define .data and .bss segments with NASM
Understand Endianness
Be able to trace programs with arbitrary memory/arithmetic operations
Understands the basics of assembly instructions mov, add, sub, inc, and dec

Referencing modules: X86 & NASM

Assembly Programming

Be able to develop assembly programs using a main classes of instructions and programming idioms.

Referencing modules: Bit Operations, Control Structures, Data Size & Arithmetic, First NASM Program, Subprograms

Assessed by:

Assembly and High-level Languages

Understand some of the relations between high-level programming languages and assembly language

Referencing modules: Bit Operations, Compiling, Data Size & Arithmetic, Subprograms

Assessed by:

The Runtime Stack

Understand how the stack is used to implement subprograms and structured as activation records and how it is managed at runtime

Referencing modules: Subprograms

Assessed by:

Compiling

Understand the general goals and principle of a compiler, including the lexer and the parse.
Understasnd the principles of regular languages (as described by finite automata and regular expressions) and of context-free languages (as described by context-gree grammars).
Gain some basic experience developing a compiler with ANTLR.

Referencing modules: Compiling

Linking & Loading

Understand the basic principle of linking and the format of object file (in particular the relocation table and the symbol table)
Understand the basic principle of loading

Referencing modules: Linking & Loading

Debugging

Understand how a debugger works and how it is useful
Be familiar with standard debuggers like gdb and tools like valgrind

Referencing modules: Debugging