Studies of branch prediction have tended to emphasize aggregate measurement of prediction performance. Instead, we have taken the approach that there are likely to be a small number of branch addresses (“sites”) in the program causing the majority of all mispredictions. Using a graphical tool we developed for analyzing program traces on-the-fly, we present three interesting results, all based o...

M igrating cells move forward by harnessing the force of actin polymerization to form a protru-sive lamellipodium at the leading edge. A protein called Lamellipodin (Lpd) promotes lamellipodium formation, but how it does so is unclear. Law et al. reveal that Lpd generates membrane protrusions in association with a key regulator of actin branching called the Scar/WAVE complex and that this inter...

Migrating fi broblasts assemble a dendritic network of branched actin fi laments that drives the formation of a lamellipodial protrusion at their leading edge. Haynes et al. reveal that, like a topiarist guiding the growth of a tree, a protein called GMF␤ " prunes " this actin network in order to guide the cell's migration towards certain directional cues (1). Branched actin networks form when ...