Pipelining is a technique used by advanced microprocessors where the microprocessor begins executing a second instruction before the first has been completed. In other words, several instructions are in the "pipeline" simultaneously, but each at a different processing stage within the microprocessor (also called the central processing unit or CPU) or a functional unit of the CPU, such as the arithmetic-logic unit (ALU). By performing this function, pipelining (or "pipeline processing" as it is sometimes called) is able to efficiently coordinate execution times of a microprocessor so that optimal use of the microprocessor is achieved. Pipelining can be compared to an automobile assembly line in which a car is assembled one step at a time throughout a line that may contain hundreds of stages. When a particular car is at a certain stage in the process, other cars are at various stages further on in the assembly process...