Vocab

Question 1

syntax error

Answer 1

A mistake in typed code that violates the rules of the programming language. Typically, code with syntax errors will not run.

Question 2

logic error

Answer 2

A mistake in an algorithm or program that causes it to behave unexpectedly or return the incorrect value.

Question 3

run-time error

Answer 3

A mistake in a program that happens only when the program is actually run, such as a program attempting to access memory that does not exist.

Question 4

overflow error

Answer 4

Error that results when the number of bits is not enough to represent the number (like a car’s odometer “rolling over”).

Question 5

bit

Answer 5

A binary digit, either 0 or 1.

Question 6

byte

Answer 6

A sequence of 8 bits

Question 7

roundoff

Answer 7

Error that results when the number of bits is not enough to represent the number with full precision (like using 3 digits to represent \piπpi as 3.14)

Question 8

analog data

Answer 8

Values that change smoothly, rather than in discrete intervals, over time. For example, the pitch and volume of a live concert.

Question 9

lossless

Answer 9

Compressing data in a way that preserves all data away and allows full recovery of the original

Question 10

lossy

Answer 10

Compressing data in a way that discards some data and makes it impossible to recover the original

Question 11

metadata

Answer 11

Data about data, like descriptive information about a file or a row in a database

Question 12

sequencing

Answer 12

The sequential execution of steps in an algorithm or code in a program (like steps in a recipe).

Question 13

selection

Answer 13

A Boolean condition to determine which of two paths are taken in an algorithm or program

Question 14

iteration

Answer 14

The repetition of steps in an algorithm or program for a certain amount of times or until a certain condition is met

Question 15

linear search

Answer 15

An algorithm that iterates through each item in a list until it finds the target value

Question 16

binary search

Answer 16

An algorithm that searches a sorted list for a value by repeatedly splitting the list in half

Question 17

reasonable time

Answer 17

A run time for an algorithm that doesn’t increase faster than a polynomial function of the input size (like 10n10n10, n, n^2n2n, squared, etc). An unreasonable run time would increase superpolynomially (like 2^n2n2, start superscript, n, end superscript or n!n!n, !)

Question 18

heuristic

Answer 18

A technique that helps an algorithm find a good solution in a hard problem (like always walking toward the north star when you are stuck in a forest).

Question 19

undecidable

Answer 19

A problem that is so logically difficult, we can’t ever create an algorithm that would be able to answer “yes or “no” for all inputs (like the halting problem)

Question 20

library

Answer 20

A collection of procedures that are useful in creating programs

Question 21

API

Answer 21

Application Programming Interface, a library of procedures and a description of how to call each procedure

Question 22

modularity

Answer 22

The separation of a program into independent modules that are each responsible for one aspect of the program’s functionality

Question 23

traversal

Answer 23

The iteration over the items in a list. A full traversal iterates over every item, while a partial traversal iterates over a subset of the items

Question 24

computing device

Answer 24

A physical device that can run a program, such as a computer, smart phone, or smart sensor

Question 25

computer network

Answer 25

A group of interconnected computing devices capable of sending or receiving data

Question 26

bandwidth

Answer 26

The maximum amount of data that can be sent in a fixed period of time over a network connection, typically measured in bits per second

Question 27

protocol

Answer 27

An agreed upon set of rules that specify the behavior of a system

Question 28

scalability

Answer 28

The ability of a system to adjust in scale to meet new demands

Question 29

IP (Internet Protocol)

Answer 29

The protocol that determines how to address nodes on the network (with IP addresses) and how to route data from one node to a destination node (using routers)

Question 30

TCP (Transmission Control Protocol)

Answer 30

A data transport protocol that includes mechanisms for reliably transmitting packets to a destination

Question 31

UDP (User Datagram Protocol)

Answer 31

A lightweight data transport protocol with minimal error checking

Question 32

World Wide Web

Answer 32

A system of linked pages, media, and files, browsable over HTTP

Question 33

HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol)

Answer 33

The protocol that powers the Web, used to request webpages from servers and submit form data to servers

Question 34

parallel computing

Answer 34

A computational model which splits a program into multiple tasks, some of which can be executed simultaneously

Question 35

speedup

Answer 35

The improvement in the amount of time a parallelized program takes to solve a problem, computed as the amount of time to complete the task sequentially divided by the amount of time to complete the task when run in parallel

Question 36

distributed computing

Answer 36

A computational model which uses multiple devices to run different parts of a program

Question 37

digital divide

Answer 37

The idea that some communities or populations have less access to computing than others, typically due to limitations of Internet speed or computer hardware access

Question 38

crowdsourcing

Answer 38

A model in which many online users combine efforts to help fund projects, generate ideas, or create goods or services (like Wikipedia)

Question 39

citizen science

Answer 39

Crowdsourcing for science! The participation of volunteers from the public in a scientific research project (like collecting rain samples or counting butterflies)

Question 40

Creative Commons

Answer 40

An alternative to copyright that allows people to declare how they want their artistic creations to be shared, remixed, used in noncommercial contexts, and how the policy should propagate with remixed versions

Question 41

open access

Answer 41

A policy that allows people to have access to documents (like research papers) for reading or data (like government datasets) for analysis

Question 42

PII (Personally identifiable information)

Answer 42

Information about an individual that can be used to uniquely identify them (directly or indirectly)

Question 43

multifactor authentication (MFA)

Answer 43

A method of user authentication which requires the user to present multiple pieces of evidence in multiple categories (such as knowledge and possession)

Question 44

encryption

Answer 44

The process of scrambling data to prevent unauthorized access

Question 45

symmetric encryption

Answer 45

A technique for encrypting data where the same key is used to both encrypt and decrypt data

Question 46

public key encryption

Answer 46

An asymmetric encryption technique that uses different keys for encrypting versus decrypting data

Question 47

cookie

Answer 47

A small amount of text that tracks information about a user visiting a website

Question 48

virus

Answer 48

A type of computer malware that can make copies of itself

Question 49

phishing

Answer 49

An attack where a user is tricked into revealing private information, often via a deceptive email

Question 50

rogue access point

Answer 50

A wireless access point that provides an attacker with unauthorized access to the traffic going over the network