- Processors are driven by a clock, which controls the timing of each step inside the chip. In this blog post, I’ll examine the clock-generation circuitry inside the Intel 386 processor. Earlier processors such as the 8086 (1978) were simpler, using two clock phases internally. The Intel 386 processor (1985) was a pivotal development for Intel as it moved x86 to CMOS (as well as being the first 32-bit x86 processor). The 386’s CMOS circuitry required four clock signals. An external crystal oscillator provided the 386 with a single clock signal and the 386’s internal circuitry generated four carefully-timed internal clock signals from the external clock.
- Chinese Communist Party (Wikipedia)
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and sole ruling party of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victorious in the Chinese Civil War against the Kuomintang. In 1949, Mao proclaimed the establishment of the People’s Republic of China. Since then, the CCP has governed China and has had sole control over the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). Successive leaders of the CCP have added their own theories to the party’s constitution, which outlines the party’s ideology, collectively referred to as socialism with Chinese characteristics. As of 2023, the CCP has more than 98 million members, making it the second largest political party by membership in the world after India’s Bharatiya Janata Party.