All terms in this list:

central processing unit: the chip in the motherboard that performs the processing for a computer

multi-core cpu: a cpu that contains the processing components of multiple independent processors in a single cpu

clock speed: a measurement of the number of instructions that a cpu can process per second

word: the amount of data that a cpu can manipulate at one time

cache memory: a group of very fast memory circuitry located or close to the cpu to speed processing

memory: chips located in the system unit used to store data and instructions while the computer is running

ram: memory used to store data and instructions while the computer is running

register: high speed memory built in the cpu

rom: nonvolatile chips on the motherboard that permanently store data

flash memory: nonvolatile memory chips that can be used for storage by the computer or the user

bios: the sequence of instructions the computer follows during the boot process

expansion slot: a location on the motherboard into which an expansion card is inserted to connect it to the motherboard

expansion card: a circuit board used to give desktop computers additional capabilities

bus: an electronic path over which data travels

throughput: the amount of data that can be transferred via the bus in a given time period

expansion bus: a bus on the motherboard used to connect peripheral devices

universal serial bus: a versatile bus architecture widely used for connecting peripherals

fire wire: a high speed bus standard used to connect devices particularly multimedia devices like digital video cameras to a computer