OT: x86 machine code [Was: Re: Self modifying code, lambda calculus - Re: ENIAC programming]

[Lars Brinkhoff]

Pontus Pihlgren <pontus at Update.UU.SE> writes:
> On Fri, Sep 18, 2015 at 06:58:24AM -0400, Mouse wrote:
>> Such as every x86 processor since, what, the Pentium?  They're all
>> RISC cores (designed for and) running an x86 emulator.
>
> I've been told this more than a few times and read it in various places. 
> It always make me wonder, could we not allow a mode in modern Intel 
> processors that lets us bypass the x86 code emulation/translation and 
> run "directly on the metal" (if there were such a thing).

I believe the VIA C3 had an undocumented feature to allow executing the
underlying RISC instructions.