how the binary number is stored in the memory .
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Binary numbers are stored in memory as sequences of bits, where each bit represents a power of 2, starting from the least significant bit (LSB) on the right to the most significant bit (MSB) on the left. Memory in a computer is organized into units called "words," which could be 8 bits (1 byte), 16Read more
Binary numbers are stored in memory as sequences of bits, where each bit represents a power of 2, starting from the least significant bit (LSB) on the right to the most significant bit (MSB) on the left. Memory in a computer is organized into units called “words,” which could be 8 bits (1 byte), 16 bits, 32 bits, or 64 bits, depending on the architecture.
1.Representation: The binary number is converted into a format that fits into the memory’s word size. For example, if the architecture is 32-bit, a binary number must fit within 32 bits.
2.Addressing: Each word in memory has a unique address. The binary number is stored at a specific memory address, and this address is used by the CPU to access the stored value.
3.Endianness: The way binary numbers are stored in memory can vary depending on the system’s endianness:
Big-endian:The MSB is stored at the lowest memory address.
Little-endian: The LSB is stored at the lowest memory address.This ordering affects how multi-byte binary numbers are interpreted and retrieved.
4.Padding and Alignment: For efficiency, memory systems often align binary numbers to specific boundaries (e.g., 4-byte boundaries). If a binary number does not perfectly fit into the word size, it may be padded with zeros to fill the entire word.
5.Two’s Complement for Negative Numbers: If the binary number represents a signed integer, it is stored using two’s complement notation, where the MSB is the sign bit. A ‘0’ in the MSB indicates a positive number, while a ‘1’ indicates a negative number. This allows for efficient arithmetic operations directly on the stored binary values.
6.Data Types and Storage: Depending on the data type (integer, floating-point, character, etc.), the binary number is stored differently. For instance, floating-point numbers follow the IEEE 754 standard, where the binary sequence is divided into sign, exponent, and mantissa bits.
Thus, binary numbers are stored in memory not just as straightforward sequences of bits but with various considerations for efficiency, alignment, and even compression, making the process more sophisticated than it appears at first glance.
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