Computer Science Glossary (70 words) Flashcards
1
Q
AI
A
- Artificial Intelligence
2
Q
ASCII full form
A
- American Standard Code for Information Interchange
3
Q
What is ASCII?
A
- It is a character encoding standard for electronic communication.
- It is a 7 bit code for characters, thus can be stored in a single byte.
4
Q
Algorithm
A
- A set of detailed instructions for accomplishing a task that after execution will terminate.
5
Q
Analog
A
- The audio signal from a microphone is analog.
- It is measured in continuous values.
6
Q
Application
A
- A runnable program that provides some service.
7
Q
Argument
A
- One of the pieces of data provided as input to a procedure of function through the call to the procedure or function.
8
Q
Assignment
A
- The process of setting and storing a value to a specific variable name.
9
Q
Bandwith
A
- The volume of information that can be transmitted or processed.
- Usually measured in bits or bytes per time unit (e.g. bits per second).
10
Q
Binary
A
- The base 2 number system, that denotes a power of 2.
- Integers can be encoded in binary in a string of 1s and 0s.
11
Q
Bit
A
- A singular binary digit.
- It is the smallest unit of information that can be represented by one of the two possible states (0 or 1).
- Often denoted as a ‘b’.
12
Q
Block
A
- A collection of statement that can be grouped together to be treated as one statement.
- Generally the only “entry” into a block of code is at the top of the code.
13
Q
Boolean
A
- A data type that can either hold ‘True’ or ‘False’ value.
- It can also refer to a type of expression, for example the expression x > 6 is Boolean.
14
Q
Byte
A
- 8 bits.
- Often denoted as a ‘B’.
15
Q
Call
A
- A statement in a programming language that starts or invokes a procedure or function.
16
Q
CPU
A
- Central Procession Unit.
- Where computer instructions are executed.
- Handles a range of processing tasks.
17
Q
CPU intensive
A
- A program that spends most of its time running on the CPU with a disproportionately small amount of time waiting for data from memory.
18
Q
Cache
A
- Memory used to speed memory access.
- It stores data that is anticipated to be used next or was just used (to be used again).
19
Q
Card
A
- A circuit board which can be plugged into your computer motherboard, that adds a certain function to the computer.
20
Q
Character
A
- A single letter or symbol that is represented by a small set of bytes in a computer.
21
Q
Chip
A
- An integrated electronic circuit generally thousands up to billions of components such a transistors and capacitors that perform complex functions such as addressable memory, CPU, I/O functions.
22
Q
Clock
A
- The internal ‘drummer’ of heartbeat that keeps CPU activities across the chip and across the motherboard in sync.
- Often measured in MHz, or GHz.
23
Q
Comment
A
- Comments are important in programs as they are nonexecuting lines of code that are used to explain lines of code in plain text.
24
Q
Compiler
A
- A program for translating a program written in one language into code that can be understood and executed by a computer.
25
Q
Computer Science
A
- The study of process, data, and computation.
26
Q
Control Structure
A
- Code of statements that change the order of executed.
- For example, am if-statement only conditionally executes code, while a lop may perform a section of code repeatedly.
27
Q
Encryption
A
- To use a code to tender data unintelligible.
- An encryption key is data that when supplied to an encryption program and the original data can encrypt data.
- A decryption key can decrypt data and recover the original data, when supplied to a decryption program with the encrypted data.
- These two keys are often the same.
28
Q
Executable
A
- A file that can be executed by the operating system.
29
Q
Expression
A
- A language construct that can be sued to produce a value.
30
Q
File
A
- A single block of information allocated by an operating system for retention beyond the execution time of any program.
31
Q
Floating Point Number
A
- A number with a decimal in it, such as 3.141592653589.
32
Q
GPU
A
- Graphical Processing Unit, it is a CPU that processes instructions specifically targeted at graphics processing.
- It is highly parallel with hundreds to thousands of simple cores.
- Especially useful for games and simulation programming.
33
Q
What does HSB or HSV stand for?
A
Hue, Saturation, Brightness/Value
34
Q
HSB or HSV
A
- A way of specifying a colour by giving the amount of each of three contributing factors to make the colour.
- Hue is the colour in the colour wheel, saturation is the amount of colour vs white, value is how bright the colour is, or distance from black.
35
Q
Hexadecimal
A
- The base 16 number system that denotes a power of 16.
36
Q
High Level Languages
A
- A language that is NOT similar to the one that runs on the hardware and that deals with more complex data types and control structures than the hardware.
- Closer to English than machine code, easier to read and understand.
- Examples include C, C++, Python.
37
Q
I/O
A
- Input and Output
38
Q
IDE
A
- Integrated Development Environment
- A software tool to help you write software, such as Microsoft Visual Code Studio.
39
Q
Kilo
A
- A prefix for a thousand, as in a kilobyte.
40
Q
Logic Error
A
- A semantic (language) error, where there isn’t a problem with the syntax of code, so it compiles, but rather a flaw in how the program works.
41
Q
Machine Instructions
A
- The instructions executed by a CPU.
- The bit level instructions of a computer.
42
Q
Mega
A
- A prefix for a million, as in a megabyte.
43
Q
Memory
A
- Addressable storage for the retrieval and storage of bytes of data.
- The term memory generally refers to the memory that is not inside the CPU.
44
Q
Nano
A
- A prefix for a billionth, as in a nanosecond.
45
Q
Nanosecond
A
- A billionth of a second.
46
Q
Octal
A
- The base number 8 number system, which is often used to express binary in shorter strings.
- Counting to ten using two octal symbols: 01, 02, 03, 04, 05, 06, 07, 10, 11, 12
47
Q
Operating System
A
- The program that runs on the computer hardware creating information objects such as files and processes.
- It assures the fair and secure allocation of processor time, access to files, and other recourses.
- Account and access control of data is commonly provided, giving it privacy/security.
48
Q
Packet
A
- A unit of information into which data is broken up for transmission in a network by other means.
- For example, a stream or file of data would be broken up into packets and set separately across the internet.
49
Q
Peripheral
A
- A physical device used by a computer that is not part of the physical box containing the CPU and memory.
- For example, a printer.
50
Q
Peta
A
- A prefix for a quadrillion, as in a petabyte.
51
Q
Port
A
- A physical socket on a computer for attaching the computer to external devices such as a printer or a router.
52
Q
Powers of Two
A
- A number that is the product of 2 multiplied together a certain number of times. (2^n)
- The first few are: 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, 128, 256
53
Q
Program
A
- A program is a set of instructions that a computer follows in order to perform a particular task, which is essentially an implementation of an algorithm.
54
Q
Protocol
A
- A standard for communication between pieces of hardware of between pieces of software that allows information and/or commands to be exchanged.
55
Q
RAM
A
- Random Access Memory
- Generally refers to the memory that is not in the CPU, and is not a disk.
- It is volatile, and is used to temporarily store current instructions and data for currently open programs, during execution amongst other things.
56
Q
Router
A
- A networking devices that forwards data packets between computer networks and may also be used to connect computers to a network.
57
Q
Syntax
A
- The grammar for a programming language
58
Q
Syntax Error
A
- Making a grammatical error in the program, such as a typo, insertion, deletion, or misuse of an element of the language.
59
Q
Tera
A
- A prefix for a trillion, as in a terbyte.
60
Q
Threat
A
- A ‘lightweight’ subunit of the execution of a process that can run in parallel with other threads in the process.
- It is a way to have parts of a process run simultaneously.
61
Q
Type
A
- The kind of data that can be stored or referred to and has a specific set of operations that apply to it (e.g addition for number types like float, integer).
- Main types are integer, boolean, float.
62
Q
Unicode
A
- A method for encoding a string of symbols such a bits, similar to ASCII.
- However Unicode uses more bits, hence it can represent more characters.
- This set of schemes can be used to represent nearly every symbol in all language, including complex ones such as mandarin.
