Stanford MIPS
MIPS, an acronym for Microprocessor without Interlocked Pipeline Stages, was a research project conducted by John L. Hennessy at Stanford University between 1981 and 1984.MIPS investigated a type of instruction set architecture (ISA) now called reduced instruction set computer (RISC), its implementation as a microprocessor with very large scale integration (VLSI) semiconductor technology, and the effective exploitation of RISC architectures with optimizing compilers.Hennessy founded MIPS Computer Systems in the same year to commercialize the technology developed by the project.The compiler scheduled instructions to avoid hazards resulting in incorrect computation whilst simultaneously ensuring that the generated code minimized execution time.The decision to expose all hazards was motivated by the desire to maximize performance by minimizing critical paths, which interlock circuits lengthened.