Data Storage and Processing Practice Quiz (28 questions)

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An information system combines sociotechnical elements to collect, process, and store data and provide information to users. A data repository narrows its role to storage, while the other choices omit key activities or the user-facing purpose.

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The theory component takes place during the first three teaching weeks, while programming is delivered in guided sessions using Python in Dodona. The alternatives misplace the theory component or treat Dodona as its delivery setting.

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An algorithm is a general solution for a type of problem, expressed as an unambiguous sequence of executable instructions that transforms well-described input into output. A program is the computer-executable representation of an algorithm, and software is a collective term.

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Euclid’s algorithm gives $84 = 2\times30 + 24$, then $30 = 1\times24 + 6$, then $24 = 4\times6 + 0$; the last nonzero divisor is 6. The other values reflect stopping early, skipping iteration, or confusing a quotient with the divisor.

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Abstraction presents the properties relevant to a goal while hiding internal operation and structure; it does not require imprecision. “Imprecision” confuses hiding details with losing accuracy, while “implementation detail” and “omission” misstate what the description includes or hides.

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A computer can solve only problem types for which an executable algorithm can be found. Faster hardware does not supply an algorithm, and a goal description or inferred procedure is not a substitute for executable instructions.

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A bit is a binary digit with value 0 or 1 and serves as a symbol for representing data. A byte consists of multiple bits, a decimal digit belongs to base 10, and a Boolean operation acts on Boolean values.

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Boolean algebra is the mathematical theory of operations on Boolean values such as true and false, represented as 1 and 0. Decimal arithmetic concerns base-10 calculation, ASCII encodes characters, and binary place-value notation represents numbers.

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A byte is a group of eight bits stored in a memory cell with a unique address. A nibble has four bits, a bit is one binary digit, and a word is a larger data unit.

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A cell’s address identifies where data is stored, while its contents are the bit pattern stored there. The value 00001000 is the contents, not the location.

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RAM temporarily holds programs and data in current use, whereas an SSD provides permanent storage for files and programs. Placing the file in RAM mistakes temporary working storage for persistent storage; cache and registers are very small, fast CPU memory.

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Mass storage is non-volatile and typically offers greater total capacity at lower cost per stored bit than working memory. Volatile working memory loses its contents without power, and CPU registers and cache are small, fast memory rather than bulk storage.

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Mechanical disk access can be delayed by moving the head to the track, waiting for the desired sector to rotate into position, and transferring the data. Memory refresh and cache lookup are not the three mechanical disk access factors.

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An uncompressed black-and-white bitmap uses one bit for each pixel, so 120 pixels require 120 bits. The 960-bit choice uses a byte per pixel, while 240 bits assumes two bits per pixel.

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The common RGB representation stores red, green, and blue intensity in three bytes per pixel; 200 × 3 = 600 bytes. One byte omits two color channels, and four bytes adds an extra channel.

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Repeated division by 2 produces binary digits as remainders, which must be read from the last remainder back to the first. Reading forward reverses their place-value order; recording quotients or dividing by 10 uses the wrong procedure.

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In two’s-complement notation, the most significant bit indicates the sign, and a value of 1 marks a negative number. The midpoint interpretation belongs to excess notation, while the sign is part of the fixed-width pattern.

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Floating-point notation divides the bit pattern into a mantissa, exponent, and sign bit, with the exponent specifying the radix-point position using excess notation. Two’s complement represents signed integers, and excess notation here encodes the exponent rather than the whole representation.

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Compression reduces the storage space required, and discarding information makes this lossy compression. Lossless compression preserves information; uncompressed storage does not reduce the required space; dictionary encoding is a specific method, not the loss classification.

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Run-length encoding records each consecutive run separately as its count and symbol: four z symbols, three q symbols, and two z symbols give `4z3q2z`. Combining the separated z runs or omitting a count fails to represent the sequence accurately.

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The CPU contains circuits that process data and coordinate the computer’s operations. Temporary storage describes registers, long-term storage is a different computer function, and mathematical operations alone describe only part of CPU activity.

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Reading copies data from working memory to the CPU using the memory-cell address and a read signal. Writing transfers data in the opposite direction, while the address identifies the cell involved in the operation.

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A machine instruction is encoded as a bit pattern that the CPU can recognize and execute. Machine language is the set of instruction types, while a program counter value or memory address identifies a location rather than an executable instruction.

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RISC is characterized by a small set of simple, fast, and efficient instructions. CISC instead has a larger set of more complex and powerful instructions; the other choices do not name this instruction-set distinction.

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The machine cycle fetches, decodes, and executes one instruction, then returns to fetching the next instruction unless a jump changes the sequence. Repeating the completed instruction or changing the order omits or misorders a stage.

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Each 16-bit instruction occupies two 8-bit memory cells, so sequential execution advances the program counter by 2: 20 + 2 = 22. Advancing by 1 treats the instruction as one cell, while 36 mistakes bit length for the address increment.

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Memory-mapped I/O assigns controller registers addresses in the same address space as memory, allowing ordinary LOAD and STORE instructions. I/O-addressed communication uses special addresses or instructions; DMA describes a transfer process, while bus arbitration coordinates shared-bus access.

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With DMA, the CPU provides the source location, destination, and transfer size, then the controller moves the data directly between the peripheral and RAM while the CPU does other work. CPU byte-by-byte copying confuses DMA with programmed transfer, memory address mapping is a separate I/O method, and the controller participates in DMA.