IT MidTerm Practice

Assembly language

One example of a low-level programming language.

Machine language

The instructions and data that correspond to software and reside in RAM when software is launched.

ALU processing for 64 bit number

It takes 4 adds to process a 64 bit number if the word length is 16.

Registers

A memory element that temporarily holds a single unit or word of data.

Clock cycle

Indicates the amount of time between two pulses of an oscillator (1 and 0) and measures the speed of the processor.

Assembler

Translates assembly language code to machine code.

Compiler

Transforms high-level source code in a high-level programming language into low level object code (binary code).

Fetch an instruction

The first step when the control unit swings into action.

Parallel Processing

Simultaneous use of more than one processor (multiple cores) to execute a program.

Serial processing

Processes data one instruction at a time, completing one instruction before beginning another.

CISC technology

What x86 processors use.

Vector graphics

Require more storage space than bitmaps, but can be enlarged without becoming pixelated.

Literature Review

Tells the reader what other researchers have discovered about the topic of the paper.

Formulating the hypothesis

A tentative assumption made to draw out and test its logical or empirical consequences to a scientific question.

AND gate

Represented by A*B.

NOT gate

Also known as an Inverter and Complimenter.

Decoder

Transforms Opcodes into control signals.

MUX

Another combinational logic circuit.

Half adder

An example of a simple, functional digital circuit built from two logic gates.

Hexadecimal

Common in programming languages.

Sampling rate

Refers to the number of times per second that a sound is measured during the recording process.

Wireframe

A representation of a 3-D object using separate lines to create a model.

Frame rate

The number of frames that are displayed per second.

Interlaced scan

A contrasting scanning technique that produces an image by drawing every other line, then filling in the in-between lines.

Lossless compression

Provides a way to compress data and reconstitute it into its original state without reducing quality.

Lossy compression

Audio compression is usually this type.

Run-length encoding

A type of lossless compression that replaces a series of similarly colored pixels with a binary code.

Interframe compression

Stores only the pixels that change color from one frame to the next.

ASCII

Stands for American Standard Code for Information Interchange.

Computer

Any device capable of processing information to produce a desired result.

Computer functions

Includes accepting data, processing data, producing output, and storing results.