[PDF][PDF] Hitting the memory wall: Implications of the obvious

WA Wulf, SA McKee - ACM SIGARCH computer architecture news, 1995 - dl.acm.org
WA Wulf, SA McKee
ACM SIGARCH computer architecture news, 1995dl.acm.org
We all know that the rate of improvement in microprocessor speed exceeds the rate of
improvement in DRAM memory speed, each is improving exponentially, but the exponent for
microprocessors is substantially larger than that for DRAMs. The difference between
diverging exponentials also grows exponentially; so, although the disparity between
processor and memory speed is already an issue, downstream someplace it will be a much
bigger one. How big and how soon? The answers to these questions are what the authors …
We all know that the rate of improvement in microprocessor speed exceeds the rate of improvement in DRAM memory speed, each is improving exponentially, but the exponent for microprocessors is substantially larger than that for DRAMs. The difference between diverging exponentials also grows exponentially; so, although the disparity between processor and memory speed is already an issue, downstream someplace it will be a much bigger one. How big and how soon? The answers to these questions are what the authors had failed to appreciate.
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