1. Computers and Programs

Question 1

True/False

Computer science is the study of computers.

Answer 1

False

Computers are to computer science what telescopes are to astronomy.

Question 2

True/False

The CPU is the “brain” of the computer.

Answer 2

True

The central processing unit (CPU) is where all the bacis operations of the computer are carried out.

Question 3

True/False

Secondary memory is also called RAM.

Answer 3

False

The main memory is called RAM (Random Access Memory).

Question 4

True/False

All information that a computer is currently working on is stored in main memory.

Answer 4

True

Question 5

True/False

The syntax of a language is its meaning, and semantics is its form.

Answer 5

False

Syntax = form
Semantics = meaning

Question 6

True/False

A function definition is a sequence of statements that defines a new command.

Answer 6

True

Function = a sequence of statements that define a new command.

Question 7

True/False

A programming environment refers to a place where programmers work

Answer 7

True

But it is not a physical place. It’s like IDLE

Question 8

True/False

A variable is used to give a name to a value so it can be referred to in other places.

Answer 8

True

A variable is used to give a name to a value so that we can refer to it at other points in the program.

Question 9

True/False

A loop is used to skip over a section of a program.

Answer 9

False

A loop is a device that tells Python to do the same thing over and over again.

Question 10

True/False

A chaotic function can’t be computed by a computer.

Answer 10

False

A chaotic function can be computed by a computer. Altough the program has a well-defined underlying behavior, the output seems unpredictable.

Question 11

What is the fundamental question of computer science?

a) How fast can a computer compute?
b) What can be computed?
c) What is the most effective programming language?
d) How much money can a programmer make?

Answer 11

What can be computed?

Question 12

An algorithm is like a…

a) newspaper
b) venus flytrap
c) drum
d) recipe

Answer 12

recipe

Question 13

A problem is intractable when…

a) you cannot reverse its solution
b) it involves tractors
c) it has many solutions
d) it is not practical to solve

Answer 13

it is not practical to solve

Question 14

Which of the following is NOT an example of secondary memory?

a) RAM
b) hard drive
c) USB flash drive
d) DVD

Answer 14

a) RAM

Question 15

Computer languages designed to be used and understood by humans are…

a) natural languages
b) high-level computer languages
c) machine languages
d) fetch-execute languages

Answer 15

High-level computer languages

Question 16

A statement is

a) a translation of machine language
b) a complete computer command
c) a precise description of a problem
d) a section of an algorithm

Answer 16

a complete computer command

Question 17

One difference between a compiler and an interpreter is…

a) a compiler is a programm
b) a compiler is used to translate high-level language into machine language
c) a compiler is no longer needed after a program is translated
d) a compiler processes source code

Answer 17

a compiler is no longer needed after a program is translated

Question 18

By convention, the statements of a program are often placed in a function called…

a) import
b) main
c) program
d) IDLE

Answer 18

main

Question 19

Which of the following is NOT true of comments?

a) They make a program more efficient.
b) They are intended for human readers.
c) They are ignored by Python.
d) In Python, they begin with a pound sign (#)

Answer 19

a) They make a program more efficient.

Question 20

The items listed in the parentheses of a function definition are called…

a) parentheticals
b) parameters
c) arguments
d) both b) and c) are correct

Answer 20

both b) and c) are correct : parameters or arguments