Final answer:
To specify the register index of the 16 registers on the processor, we would need 4 bits.
Step-by-step explanation:
To specify the register index of the 16 registers on the processor, we would need 4 bits. This is because 2^4 = 16. Each bit can represent two states, 0 and 1, so with 4 bits, we can represent 16 different combinations, which is enough to cover all 16 registers.