ap csp semester 1

Computing Innovations

Computing Innovations

an innovation that includes a computer or program code as an integral part of its functionality

Binary Question

a question to which there are only two possible answers

Binary Message

a message that can only be one of two possible values

Bit

A contraction of "Binary Digit". The single unit of information in a computer, typically represented as a 0 or 1

Lossless Compression

a data compression algorithm that allows the original data to be perfectly reconstructed from the compressed data

Image

A type of data used for graphics or pictures.

Metadata

Data that describes other data. For example, a digital image may include this to describe the size of the image, number of colors, or resolution.

Sampling

measuring values of the analog signal at regular intervals called samples. The samples are measured to figure out the exact bits required to store each sample.

Pixel

Short for "picture element" it is the fundamental unit of a digital image, typically a tiny square or dot which contains a single point of color of a larger image.

Hexadecimal Number System

A number system consisting of 16 distinct symbols - 0-9 and A-F - which can occur in each place value.

Lossy Compression

A compression scheme in which "useless" or less-than-totally-necessary information is thrown out in order to reduce the size of the data. The eliminated data is unrecoverable.

The Digital Divide

the idea that not everyone has equal access to the internet. Demographics such as household income, level of education, race and ethnicity, age, geographic location, and community type can affect an individual's access to the internet.

Code

To write code, or to write instructions for a computer

ASCII

American Standard Code for Information Interchange. Universally recognized raw text format that any computer can understand.

Internet

A group of computers and servers that are connected to each other.

Net Neutrality

the principle that all Internet traffic should be treated equally by Internet Service Providers.

Client

a computer that requests data stored on a server.

Overflow Error

errors that occur when the execution of a set of instructions return a value outside of this range

Roundoff Error

a mathematical miscalculation or quantization error caused by altering a number to an integer or one with fewer decimals.

Copyright

the law to prevent plagiarism

Creative Commons

where artists allow other people to use a portion of their work to advertise or to let them add to it

IP Address

a number assigned to any item that is connected to the Internet.

Network Redundancy

having multiple backups to ensure reliability during cases of high usage or failure

Packets

Small chunks of information that have been carefully formed from larger chunks of information.

Router

a computer which receives messages traveling across a network and redirects them towards their intended destinations based on the addressing information included with the message.

TCP - Transmission Control Protocol

provides reliable, ordered, and error-checked delivery of a stream of packets on the internet. Tightly linked with IP and usually seen as TCP/IP in writing.

URL

An easy-to-remember address for calling a web page (like www.code.org).

DNS - Domain Name System

the Internet's system for converting alphabetic names into numeric IP addresses.

HTTP - Hypertext Transfer Protocol

the protocol used by the World Wide Web. It describes how messages are formatted and interchanged, and how web servers respond to commands.

Abstraction

a simplified representation of something more complex. Allows you to hide details

to help you manage complexity, focus on relevant concepts, and reason about problems at a higher level.

Server

A computer that awaits and responds to requests for data.

Algorithm

A list of steps to finish a task.

Low level programming language

A programming language that captures only the most primitive operations available to a machine. Anything that a computer can do can be represented with combinations of low level commands.

High level programming language

A programming language with many commands and features designed to make common tasks easier to program. Any high level functionality is encapsulated as combinations of low level commands.

Selection

A generic term for a type of programming statement (usually an if-statement) that uses a Boolean condition to determine, or select, whether or not to run a certain block of statements.

Sequencing

Putting commands in correct order so computers can read the commands.

Function

A named group of programming instructions. Reusable abstractions that reduce the complexity of writing and maintaining programs.

Documentation

a description of the behavior of a command, function, library, API, etc.

Debugging

Finding and fixing problems in an algorithm or program.

String

a sequence of characters example: "hello world" and "KGG1405"

Numbers/Integers

numeric variables holding whole numbers

Floating-point Number

a number that has a decimal place

Concatenation

a series of interconnected things or events

Global Variable

a variable defined outside a function. It can be accessed throughout the program by any function defined within the program

Local Variable

a variable that is only accessible within a specific part of a program, it can be accessed only within the function in which it is defined

Boolean Expressions

a logical statement that is either TRUE or FALSE

3 logical operators: AND, OR, and NOT

Example: age > 12 and age < 16

MOD

finds the remainder of division of one number by another

Example: 10 MOD 2 = 0

Example: 11 MOD 3 = 2

If Statement

a programming conditional statement that, if proved true, performs a function or displays information

Logical Operators

&&, ||, != (and, or, not)

Open source

Where people let others add to their code

Open access

Where people let others add to their research

Internet Censorship

Legal control or suppression of what can be accessed, published, or viewed on the Internet.

Bandwidth

The maximum amount of data transmitted over an internet connection in a given amount of time

Latency

A value that measures how much time packets need to travel to their destination. Basically how fast you receive something

Fault tolerant

Can continue to function even in the event of individual component failures. This is important because elements of complex systems like a computer network fail at unexpected times, often in groups.

UDP - User Datagram Protocol

a communication protocol used across the Internet for especially time-sensitive transmissions. Does not check for lost data

Datastream

Info passed through the internet in packets

SSL and TLS

Layers of security around websites and messages to keep them safe from hackers

HTTPS - Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure

Makes sure websites are secure

Certificate authorities

People who verify identities of websites and issue certificates for them

Scalability

The capacity of a system to change in size and scale to meet new demands

World Wide Web

a system of linked pages, programs, and files

Sequential programming

Where program statements run from top to bottom

Event-driven programming

Where some program statements are run when triggered by an event, like a mouse click or a key press

Conditional statement

programming language commands for making decisions and evaluating for true or false

GET request

a request sent to grab data from a data source with the help of the internet

Cookie

A piece of data from a website that is stored within a web browser that the website can retrieve at a later time. Used to tell the server that users have returned to a particular website

De Morgan's Law

A set of rules for converting an expression containing NOTs into an expression that does not contain any NOTs. Basically, Boolean statements can be written in different ways to the same effect

Intellectual property

a work or invention that is the result of creativity, such as a manuscript or a design, to which one has rights and for which one may apply for a patent, copyright, trademark, etc.

Byte

A unit of digital information that most commonly consists of eight bits.

Analog

using signals or information represented by a continuously physical quantity

Broadcasting

Transmitting a packet that will be received by every device on a network

Protocol

An agreed-upon set of rules that specify the behavior of some system

Routing

the process of finding a path from sender to receiver.

Spoofing

When someone pretends to be someone else on the internet with the intent of obtaining unauthorized data.

HTML - Hypertext Markup Language

The standard coding language used to construct World Wide Web documents.

Crowdsourcing

the practice of obtaining information or opinions about a task or project by enlisting the services of a large number of people, either paid or unpaid, typically via the internet.

Citizen science

when the public helps conduct scientific research

Pair Programming

a collaborative programming style in which two programmers switch between the roles of writing code and tracking or planning high level progress

Comment

form of program documentation written into the program to be read by people and which do not affect how a program runs