Deck 2: Hardware Designed to Meet the Need

Question 1

When bytes are used to represent a finite set of data such as the 52 cards in a deck, a table can be used to associate each unit of data with a unique bit pattern.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Computer programmers can assign bytes to represent anything by designing a look-up table.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

The decimal number system, also called base 10, was adopted by humans because of its ease of use for our 10-fingered species.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

Digitized information is valueless without the ability to process it into useful forms.

Question 5

Any object having at least one distinct state can be used as a digital switch.

Question 6

When electricity is flowing through a transistor it represents a 0; when it is not flowing it represents a 1.

Question 7

Intel, AMD, and other manufacturers are manufacturing dual-core processors and quad-core processors that use two and four CPUs on one chip that work together to provide twice and four times the speed of traditional single-core chips.

Question 8

Data flows back and forth between the CPU and RAM across the rear side bus.

Question 9

Typically the FSB connects to a chipset that ties together several bus systems sending and receiving bytes from memory, input and output devices, storage, networks, and other motherboard components.

Question 10

Faster clock speeds do not mean that a device will generate more heat and require a larger cooling system.

Question 11

A processor with a 32-bit wordlength has the capacity to be twice as fast as a processor with an 8-bit wordlength.

Question 12

The truest measure of a processor's performance is how well it integrates with the computer's memory.

Question 13

ROM is sometimes called memory or primary storage.

Question 14

On notebook systems, the graphics hardware is typically in the form of a separate graphics card that you can remove or upgrade.

Question 15

Because both the processor and RAM require electricity to store data, both contain only minimal data when a computer is initially powered up.

Question 16

CMOS is the reason that a PC is able to maintain the correct time and date even when it is powered down.

Question 17

Two types of media use magnetic storage: disks and tapes.

Question 18

Just like the ROM on your motherboard, once data has been recorded on a CD-ROM, it cannot be modified-the disc is read-only.

Question 19

Besides their use in performing mathematical calculations, base ten numbers are the key ingredient for digitizing sound, music, photographs, drawings, paintings, animation, and movies. _________________________

Question 20

On the road, digital convergence takes the form of smart phones and other multipurpose handheld devices that merge cell phone, PDA, MP3 player, digital video player, and digital camera functionality into a single portable device. _________________________

Question 21

Integrated circuits, also called keys, are used to store and process bits and bytes in today's computers. _________________________

Question 22

A CPU consists of three primary components: the arithmetic/logic unit, the processor unit, and registers. _________________________

Question 23

The latest technique in chip design is referred to as multicore technology and refers to housing more than one CPU on a chip. _________________________

Question 24

RAM capacities in today's new PCs typically range from 1 GB in low-end PCs and netbooks, to 6 GB in powerful desktop PCs. _________________________

Question 25

The execution of an instruction is a step-by-step process that involves two phases: the idle phase and the execution phase. _________________________

Question 26

Wordlength is the number of words that a CPU can process at once. _________________________

Question 27

One form of multiprocessing is called tandem processing, which speeds processing by linking several microprocessors to operate at the same time. _________________________

Question 28

Secondary storage devices are used to store data more permanently than RAM, such as when the computer is turned off. _________________________

Question 29

Mail time refers to the amount of time it takes for a request for data to be fulfilled by the storage device. _________________________

Question 30

A technology called a(n) data area network links together many storage devices over a network and treats them as one large disk. _________________________

Question 31

Blu-ray makes use of the shorter wavelength of blue light to read and write even smaller pits on the optical disc surface for higher capacity. _________________________

Question 32

A solid-state storage device stores data using transistors. _________________________

Question 33

Universal Serial Bus is a standard that allows a wide array of devices to connect to a computer through a common port. _________________________

Question 34

From large server computers that support the needs of thousands of users, to the smallest smart phone, computing devices share fundamental components, such as ____.

A) processing components
B) data storage
C) input and output capabilities
D) all of the above

Question 35

-The accompanying figure illustrates a ____.

A) look-up graph
B) look-up table
C) reference graph
D) reference table

Question 36

-Referring to the accompanying figure, the ASCII chart shown above is used to associate data with ____.

A) bytes
B) words
C) numbers
D) HTML code

Question 37

A computer is a digital electronics device that supports four activities that do NOT include ____.

A) Input
B) Output
C) Processing
D) Decision making

Question 38

Digital devices store and process data as ____.

A) text
B) bits
C) graphics
D) files

Question 39

One approach to data representation is a ____ table. For example, with a table of the alphabet, you might look up 01000111 to find that it represents the uppercase letter G.

A) find now
B) look-up
C) key
D) search

Question 40

In the early days of computing, the computer industry agreed on a code for representing keyboard text characters and named it ____.

A) ASCII
B) ASCI
C) ASKEE
D) ASCEE

Question 41

The quality of a digital electronics device is typically a reflection of the ____ of its processor.

A) size
B) manufacturer
C) speed
D) age

Question 42

Computers use digital ____ not only to store bits and bytes but also to process them.

A) switches
B) signals
C) functions
D) methods

Question 43

Invented in ____ at Bell Labs, transistors have become the key ingredient of all digital circuits, including those used in computers.

A) 1937
B) 1947
C) 1967
D) 1977

Question 44

In the late 1950s, Jack Kilby of Texas Instruments and Robert Noyce of Fairchild Semiconductor developed a method to integrate multiple transistors into a single module called a(n) ____ circuit.

A) core
B) multicore
C) synergized
D) integrated

Question 45

Today's technology is able to pack all the CPU circuits onto a single module smaller than the size of your smallest fingernail, called a ____.

A) miniprocessor
B) microprocessor
C) mini-module
D) micro-module

Question 46

A processor is engineered to carry out specific instructions called its instruction ____.

A) group
B) set
C) key
D) book

Question 47

Nanotubes are tubes made of lattices that are ____ atom(s) deep.

A) one
B) two
C) three
D) four

Question 48

The arithmetic/____ unit contains the circuitry to carry out instructions, such as mathematical and logical operations.

A) knowledge
B) logic
C) program
D) text

Question 49

____ hold the bytes currently being processed.

A) Registers
B) Memory markers
C) FSBs
D) Control units

Question 50

Intel has built a prototype 80-core processor, containing ____ million transistors, slated for delivery by 2011.

A) 10
B) 50
C) 100
D) 150

Question 51

The ____ side bus consists of electronic pathways between the CPU and RAM capable of transporting several bytes at once.

A) front
B) back
C) right
D) left

Question 52

Clock speeds in today's digital devices are often measured in ____ which is millions of cycles per second.

A) kilohertz
B) megahertz
C) gigahertz
D) terahertz

Question 53

____ memory is a type of high-speed memory that a processor can access more rapidly than RAM.

A) Clipboard
B) Banked
C) Library
D) Cache

Question 54

____ level(s) of cache are used in today's personal computers.

A) One
B) Two
C) Three
D) Four

Question 55

Today's personal computers carry out billions of instructions per second, or operate in the ____ range.

A) megaflop
B) gigaflop
C) megaflip
D) gigaflip

Question 56

____ is processing that occurs using more than one processing unit.

A) Megaprocessing
B) Gigaprocessing
C) Multiprocessing
D) Synched processing

Question 57

Typically used in larger workstations, coprocessors are ____ processors that speed processing by executing specific types of instructions while the CPU works on another processing activity.

A) general-purpose
B) special-purpose
C) either a. or b.
D) neither a. nor b.

Question 58

Today's PCs typically include a ____ processing unit, a powerful processor that handles advanced graphics rendering for demanding graphics applications such as the 3D environments of games.

A) photo
B) color
C) graphics
D) rendering

Question 59

A technique called ____ allows processors from different computers to work together over a network on complex problems.

A) grid computing
B) clustering
C) either a. or b.
D) neither a. nor b.

Question 60

____ parallel processing (MPP), used in supercomputers, involves using hundreds or thousands of processors operating together.

A) Mega
B) Massively
C) Maxi
D) Monster

Question 61

____ storage is storage that is used by a computer system for standard operations.

A) System
B) Backup
C) Processor
D) Central

Question 62

-The accompanying figure illustrates the execution of a(n) ____.

A) instruction
B) process
C) command
D) sequential list

Question 63

-Referring to the accompanying figure, steps 1 and 2 are often referred to as the ____ phase.

A) execution
B) instruction
C) process
D) command

Question 64

-Referring to the accompanying figure, steps 3 and 4 are often referred to as the ____ phase.

A) execution
B) instruction
C) process
D) action

Question 65

There are several forms of system storage, including RAM, cache, video RAM, ROM, and CMOS. Of these, ____ has the largest capacity.

A) RAM
B) cache
C) ROM
D) CMOS

Question 66

RAM exists as a set of chips grouped together on a circuit board called a ____.

A) SIM
B) SIMM
C) SAM
D) SAMM

Question 67

Graphics memory, sometimes called ____, is used to store image data for a computer display in order to speed the processing and display of video images.

A) GRAM
B) VRAM
C) MRAM
D) PRAM

Question 68

Graphics memory acts as a(n) ____ between the microprocessor and the display.

A) buffer
B) intermediate storage area
C) either a. or b.
D) neither a. nor b.

Question 69

Desktop systems often use a graphics ____ board called a graphics card or video card that contains the graphics memory, GPU, and other graphics hardware and is plugged into the motherboard.

A) transistor
B) magnetic
C) bus
D) circuit

Question 70

CMOS memory (pronounced see-moss, short for ____ metal-oxide semiconductor) provides semipermanent storage for system configuration information that may change.

A) computer
B) complementary
C) central
D) compact

Question 71

When selecting storage devices and media, you should examine its selling features, including ____.

A) access time associated with the media
B) storage capacity
C) portability
D) all of the above

Question 72

The storage ____ of a storage medium is the maximum amount of bytes that it can hold.

A) scalability
B) capacity
C) access rating
D) RAM

Question 73

Magnetic storage devices use the magnetic properties of ____ oxide particles to store bits and bytes more permanently than RAM.

A) iron
B) copper
C) lead
D) zinc

Question 74

Magnetic disks can be ____ platters (hard disks) or Mylar plastic film (floppy disks).

A) thick steel
B) thin steel
C) thick copper
D) thin copper

Question 75

Microdrives, tiny hard drives that can store gigabytes of data on a disk one or two ____ in size, have transformed handheld devices.

A) millimeters
B) centimeters
C) inches
D) kilometers

Question 76

Two 60 GB microdrives enable the current iPod Classic to store up to ____ songs.

A) 10,000
B) 20,000
C) 30,000
D) 40,000

Question 77

Magnetic tape is an example of a ____ storage medium because data is written and read in sequential order from the beginning of the tape to the end.

A) sequential access
B) parallel access
C) logical
D) regimented

Question 78

RAID or ____ array of independent disks uses a second system of disks to maintain a backup copy of the data stored on the primary disks.

A) repeat
B) redundant
C) random
D) read-only

Question 79

A compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), commonly referred to as a CD, is an optical medium that stores up to ____ MB of data.

A) 600
B) 700
C) 800
D) 900

Question 80

A digital video disc read-only memory (DVD-ROM) stores over ____ GB of data in a fashion similar to CDs except that DVDs are able to write and read much smaller pits on the disc surface.

A) 1.7
B) 2.7
C) 3.7
D) 4.7