Introduction to Information and

Computer Science

Computer Hardware

Lecture a

This material (Comp4_Unit3a) was developed by Oregon Health and Science University, funded by the Department of Health
and Human Services, Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology under Award Number
IU24OC000015.
 Computer Hardware
Learning Objectives
List the major elements of a computer (Lecture a)
Describe how data is stored in memory and in secondary storage
(Lecture b)
Describe how data is represented in binary notation (Lecture b)
Describe the function of the central processing unit (CPU) of the
computer (Lecture c)
Describe how data is input/output from a computer (Lecture c)
Describe how the elements of a computer system work together
(Lecture c)
Explain how specialized architectures and embedded systems are
used in healthcare settings (Lecture c)

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Lecture a
 What is a Computer?

An electronic device that receives input and

produces output that is useful to people or
devices
Made up of hardware and software
Executes instructions found in software
programs

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Lecture a
 What is a Computer?
(continued)

Computers understand only binary numbers

All input is translated into a binary value
Output is generally translated from a binary
value to a code understood by users (people)
Output is sent from one computer to another
in binary format

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Lecture a
 Computer Hardware Components

Computer hardware consists of:

System components
Storage devices
Input devices
Output devices

Health IT Workforce Curriculum Introduction to Information and Computer Science

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Lecture a
 System Components
Motherboard
Made up of circuitry, chips, and thousands of thin
copper wires
Central Processing Unit (CPU)
The brain of the computer that is responsible for all
operations
Has its own memory which serves as a work area.
Modern computers have multiple processors (or
cores)

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Lecture a
 System Components (continued)
A modern motherboard

(highwycombe, 2011, CC BY-SA 3.0)

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Lecture a
 Motherboard Ports are

Expansion ports on motherboard rear panel:

Interface between the computer and external
device
An example is a mouse (PS/2) port, usually
colored green
Some expansion ports permit device
connection while the computer is running ("hot
swappable")

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Lecture a
 Motherboard Ports are also
Expansion cards that plug into motherboard:
PCI (peripheral component interface) slots hold
expansion cards.
For example, network interface card
PCI standards and architecture provide functionality
Standards needed for interoperability between
hardware manufactured by various vendors
PCI Express (PCIe) replaces PCI-X and AGP and
is found in modern computer systems

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Lecture a
 Motherboard Buses

Buses
Copper wires on a motherboard that connect
motherboard devices for communications purposes
A motherboard has a number of buses;
Main three buses:
Address busDestination address for this
communication
Control busTiming and specific commands
Data busActual data to be acted upon

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Lecture a
 Motherboard Buses (continued)

For example, if a device requests data be saved

to the hard disk:
The save command is placed on the control
bus
The actual data to be saved is placed on the
data bus
The physical address on the HD is placed
on the address bus

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Lecture a
 What is a Device?
A computer device is hardware that is not part of
computer case or installed inside computer
Input devices provide data and control settings to
computer:
Key presses (keyboard)
Sound (microphone)
Movement (mouse)
Output devices communicate data processing done by a
computer to the world outside the computer:
Monitor
Printer
Headphone
Speakers

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Lecture a
 What is a Device? (continued)

Some devices are standalone hardware:

Computers are devices!
Routers manage access to networks
Digital cameras
Cell phones
Handheld equipment
Can you think of others?

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Lecture a
 Device Functionality

Devices usually connect to the computer via

ports but can connect wirelessly as well
Devices can also connect to the computer via
expansion cards
Devices communicate by sending/receiving
electronic signals that are translated to binary
(machine language instructions)

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Lecture a
 Input Devices
Keyboard
Device whose key strokes are usually interpreted by software into some
type of symbol or symbols
For example, the capital letter A, typed into word processing
document, is sent electronically in binary code to motherboard (as
01000001) and output on monitor in alphabetic format
Mouse
Pointing device that functions by detecting motion using X and Y
coordinates system, relative to its point of origin on some type of
surface
Sound
Devices include CD/DVD players, microphones

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Lecture a
 Input Devices (continued)

Touchpadsfound on most modern laptops.

Surface is pressure-sensitive and able to detect
(finger) movement and translate this as mouse
movement.
Other common input devices include game
joysticks, fingerprint readers, cameras, and bar
code readers used in stores.

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Lecture a
 Input Devices (continued)
Computerized Tomography (CT) Scans
a diagnostic procedure that uses special X-ray equipment to
obtain cross-sectional pictures of the body. [Wikepedia.com, 2011]

A patient is receiving a CT scan for

cancer. Outside the scanning room,
an imaging computer reveals a 3D
image of the body's interior.

(rosiescancerfund.com, 2010, CC BY 3.0)

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Lecture a
 Input Devices (continued)
Positron Emission Tomography (PET) Scans
a nuclear medicine imaging technique which produces a three-
dimensional image or picture of functional processes in the body.
[Wikepedia.com, 2010]

The image displays the GE

Discovery D600 PET/CT
System, with 16 slice CT
System, built in 2009.

(hg6996, C2009, PD-US)

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Lecture a
 Input Devices (continued)

Ultrasonography
Sound waves are used to
produce an image. The
echoes are received as input
from a sonographic probe
and translated into pixels.

( Rickey, D., 2006, CC-BY-SA-2.5)

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Lecture a
 Input Devices (continued)
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)a body is placed in a
magnetic field and flooded with a radio frequency pulse that
produces an image of the bodys interior structure.

The image represents

the output of an MRI
scan of the human head.

(Reed, D., 2009, CC BY 3.0)

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Lecture a
 Output Devices

Monitor
Display device that can show computer input and output on
screen
Printer
Device that usually produces a paper copy based on an
electronic document
Connects to the motherboard via USB, parallel, or other ports,
depending on device
Flash drive
Secondary storage device that connects to the computer via a
USB port

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Lecture a
 Output Devices (continued)
Speakers
Hardware devices connected to a sound card installed on
motherboard
An onboard speaker does not connect to a sound card since sound card
functionality is part of motherboards circuitry.

Sonographic equipment
Produces images based
on sound waves received

(DuBose, T., 2008, CC BY-SA 3.0)

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Lecture a
 Output Devices (continued)
Electrocardiography (ECG or EKG)
An interpretation of the electrical activity of the heart over time
captured and externally recorded by skin electrodes
A noninvasive recording produced by an electrocardiographic device

(MoodyGroove, 2007, PD-US)

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Lecture a
 Output Devices (continued)

Voice synthesizer
Produces sound based on text input
Physicist Stephen Hawkings synthesized voice is
known throughout the world although he lost his
ability to speak in 1985
Other common output devices
Projectors, scanners, and fax machines

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Lecture a
 Computer Hardware
Summary Lecture a
Major computer elements include the motherboard, CPU, I/O
devices, memory, secondary storage, buses, expansion cards, and
ports
Devices are hardware not installed inside the computer
Devices connect to the computer via ports
Input devices include the keyboard, mouse, and microphones
Medical input devices include CT scanner, PET scanner, ultrasound
probes, and MRI scanners
Output devices include monitors, printers, and flash drives
Medical output devices include sonographic image producers, EKG
systems, and voice synthesizers

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Lecture a
 Computer Hardware
References Lecture a
References
US National Institute of Health, National Cancer Institute. Computed Tomography (CT): Questions and Answers.
[Internet]. 2011 Nov [cited 2011 Nov 05]. Available from:
http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Detection/CT.
Wikipedia. Positron emission tomography. [Internet]. 2011 Oct [cited 2011 Nov 05]. Available from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Positron_emission_tomography
Wikipedia. Stephen Hawking. [Internet]. 2011 Nov [cited 2011 Nov 05]. Available from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Hawking

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Lecture a
 Computer Hardware
References Lecture a
Images
Slide 7: A modern motherboard [image on the Internet]. highwycombe (C2011). Accessed Jan 2012 from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motherboard. (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Slide 17: A patient is receiving a CT scan for cancer. Outside of the scanning room is an imaging computer that
reveals a 3D image of the body's interior. [image on the Internet]. rosiescancerfund.com (C2010). Accessed Jan
2012 from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Positron_emission_tomograph. (CC BY 3.0).
Slide 18: PET/CT-System with 16-slice CT; the ceiling mounted device is an injection pump for CT contrast agent
[image on the Internet]. hg6996 (C2009). Accessed Jan 2012 from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Positron_emission_tomograph. (PD-US).
Slide 19: Medical sonographic instrument [image on the Internet]. Rickey, D. (C2006). Accessed Jan 2012 from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medical_ultrasonography. (CC-BY-SA-2.5).
Slide 20: Para-sagittal MRI of the head, with aliasing artifacts (nose and forehead appear at the back of the head)
[image on the Internet]. Reed, D. (C2008). Accessed Jan 2012 from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnetic_Resonance_Imaging. (CC BY 3.0).
Slide 22: Orthogonal planes of a 3 dimensional sonographic volume with transverse and coronal measurements for
estimating fetal cranial volume [image on the Internet]. DuBose, T. (C2008). Accessed Jan 2012 from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medical_ultrasonography. (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Slide 23: 12 Lead EKG of a 26-year-old male [image on the Internet]. MoodyGroove (C2007). Accessed Jan 2012
from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrocardiography. (PD-US).

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Lecture a