Split array and scalar data cache: A comprehensive study of data cache organization.

Existing cache organization suffers from the inability to distinguish different types of localities, and non-selectively cache all data rather than making any attempt to take special advantage of the locality type. This causes unnecessary movement of data among the levels of the memory hierarchy and increases in miss ratio. In this dissertation I propose a split data cache architecture that will group memory accesses as scalar or array references according to their inherent locality and will subsequently map each group to a dedicated cache partition. In this system, because scalar and array references will no longer negatively affect each other, cache-interference is diminished, delivering better performance. Further improvement is achieved by the introduction of victim cache, prefetching, data flattening and reconfigurability to tune the array and scalar caches for specific application. The most significant contribution of my work is the introduction of novel cache architecture for embedded microprocessor platforms. My proposed cache architecture uses reconfigurability coupled with split data caches to reduce area and power consumed by cache memories while retaining performance gains. My results show excellent reductions in both memory size and memory access times, translating into reduced power consumption. Since there was a huge reduction in miss rates at L-1 caches, further power reduction is achieved by partially or completely shutting down L-2 data or L-2 instruction caches. The saving in cache sizes resulting from these designs can be used for other processor activities including instruction and data prefetching, branch-prediction buffers. The potential benefits of such techniques for embedded applications have been evaluated in my work. I also explore how my cache organization performs for non-numeric data structures. I propose a novel idea called "Data flattening" which is a profile based memory allocation technique to compress sparsely scattered pointer data into regular contiguous memory locations and explore the potentials of my proposed Spit cache organization for data treated with data flattening method

Improving Uniformity of Cache Access Pattern using Split Data Caches

In this paper we show that partitioning data cache into array and scalar caches can improve cache access pattern without having to remap data, while maintaining the constant access time of a direct-mapped cache and improving the performance of L-1 cache memories. By using 4 central moments (mean, standard-deviation, skewness and kurtosis) we report on the frequency of accesses to cache sets and show that split data caches significantly mitigate the problem of non-uniform accesses to cache sets for several embedded benchmarks (from MiBench) and some SPEC benchmarks

Case Studies: Developing a Cost-Effective Approach to treating HIV in Africa

The purpose of this research is to investigate the cost-effectiveness of government-subsidized HIV intervention programs and its effects upon the labor force in Africa. This study will discuss how Africa became one of the densest regions in the world to fall victim to HIV/AIDS along with a discussion on the present framework of intervention programs and treatments and their shortcomings. One of the largest government-subsidized programs is the antiretroviral therapy (ART) offered to those who have already contracted HIV/AIDS. The ART treatment will be assessed as to how cost-effective it is and whether the incidence rate has truly fallen enough to show a measurable growth upon the diminished labor force. Medically invasive treatment for those who have contracted the disease is not the primary concern, rather it is to reduce the actual contraction and expansion of this disease. These preventative techniques come in the form of counseling, peer and school-based education, and the use of the mass media. The success of these programs will be assessed to showcase whether there has been a considerable improvement in preventing the incidence among certain age-based populations. The survey of information will be conducted through case studies, epidemiological analyses, and health economics researches ongoing or completed

Log Kya Kahenge (What Will People Say): Honour-Based Violence as a Response to Community Influenced Control and the Fear of Ostracization

Honour-based violence (HBV) is a particular subset of violence against women (VAW) that is based on the belief that an individual (mostly women) has brought shame and dishonour upon their family and community. This particular justification is limited and ignores the pressure and fear of community condemnation and ostracization that the perpetrator (mostly men) experience. In order to apprehend the justifications for HBV, this thesis will address the subject of VAW and how it is systematic and embedded within societal norms, regardless of region, race, or creed. It is then necessary to not only define religion, culture and tradition but also address the underlying correlation between HBV and Islam, that despite being refuted by Islamic leaders, continues to dominate research regarding this form of violence. Focusing solely on these two points (women and Islam) of contention ignores the mindset of the perpetrator, as their supposition of honour is derived from almost exclusively from the fear of log kya kahenge (what will people say). Instead, using sociological theories, the continuity of HBV should be examined based upon the impellent fear: heteronormativity and the community itself