AP CSP FLASHCARDS

Agile software development

An approach to software development that emphasizes a flexible and ready response to meet a shifting target.

Benchmarking

Running a program on many data sets to be sure its performance falls within required limits

timing the same algorithm on two different machines.

Code library

A collection of thoroughly tested object code for various useful tasks.

Coding

The process of translating the detailed designs into computer code.

Divide-and-conquer

A program design strategy in which tasks are broken down into subtasks

Empirical testing

Designing a special set of test cases and running the program using these test data.

Executable module

The resulting object code after a linker inserts requested code from code libraries.

External documentation

Any materials assembled to clarify the program's design and implementation.

Feasibility study

A step in the software development life cycle that evaluates a proposed project and compares the costs and benefits of various solutions.

Integrated development environment (IDE)

A collection of programs that support software development

Integration testing

After unit testing

Internal documentation

Documentation that is part of the program code itself.

Logic error

An error in the algorithm used to solve a problem.

Object code

Machine language instructions.

Pair programming

Involves two programmers at a single workstation. At any given point in time

Problem specification

A step in the software development life cycle that involves
developing a clear

Procedural language

A program written in a procedural language consists of sequences of statements that manipulate data items.

Program design phase

A step in the software development life cycle that plans the structure of the software to be written.

Program maintenance

The process of adapting an existing software product due to errors

Program verification

Used to prove that if the input data to a program satisfies certain conditions

Regression testing

If anything is changed on an already-tested module

Runtime error

An error that occurs when the program is run using certain sets of data that result in some illegal operation

Semantics

The meaning of correctly written programming statements.

Source code

High-level language instructions.

Syntax error

An error that occurs because a program statement fails to follow the correct
rules of syntax.

Technical documentation

Documentation that enables programmers who later have to modify the program to understand the code.

Third-generation language

Another name for high-level programming language as
opposed to machine language (first generation) or assembly language (second generation).

Top-down decomposition

A program design strategy in which tasks are broken down into subtasks

Syntax

The rules for exactly how programming statements must be written

the grammatical structure of a programming language

Application

(Java) A complete standalone program that resides and runs on a self-contained computer.

External library

A well-written

Functional programming languages

Views every task in terms of functions. In this context

Knowledge base

Facts and rules about a certain domain of interest.

Open source

Software whose source code is freely available and may be used

Recursive

Something that is defined in terms of "smaller versions" of itself.

Computational model

A model constructed using algorithmic procedures implemented as computer programs.

Computational steering

A procedure for using a computational model to improve the design of an actual system by continually resetting model parameters to improve system performance.

Computer graphics

The field of computer science that examines the technical problems of displaying visual images on a computer screen.

Continuous model

A model of a system using mathematical equations that describe system performance as a continuous function of time t.

Discrete event simulation

A computational modeling technique that simulates the behavior of a system only at discrete points in time.

Garbage in

garbage out

Scientific visualization

The use of images and visualization techniques to make scientific data easier to interpret and understand.

Simulation model

Another term for a computational model.

Statistical distribution

This is a mathematical function that describes the probability of a random quantity taking on certain values.

Stochastic components

Parts of a model that display random behavior.

Uniform random number

Every value in the range from a to b has the same chance of occurring.

Analogy

Arguing about a problem by comparing it to a related problem

Consequentialism

A school of thought in ethics that focuses on the consequences of an act to determine if the act is good or bad.

Cyberbullying

Humiliating

Ethics

The study of how to decide if something is morally right or wrong.

Hacktivism

Hacking that is intended as political activism.

Peer-to-peer file sharing

The sharing of files between two equal participants on a network. This is distinct from the client-server model in which the two sides serve very different roles--one side only sending information (the server) and the other side only receiving information (the client).

Computer science

The study of algorithms

Computing agent

The entity (machine

High-level programming language

A programming language that uses both natural language constructs and mathematical notation.

Infinite loop

The repetitive execution of a block of operations that will never end. This is a fatal error when it occurs in an algorithm.

Sequential operation

An algorithmic operation that carries out a single task and then moves on to the next operation in sequence.

Algorithm discovery

The process of finding an algorithmic solution to a given problem. Computation: An algorithmic operation that carries out a single numeric computation and stores the result.

Computation

An algorithmic operation that carries out a single numeric computation and stores the result.

Conditional statements

Operations that ask a question and select the next instruction to carry out based on the answer to that question.

Continuation condition

The true/false condition that will determine when the iteration has been completed.

Control operations

Operations that alter the normal sequential flow of control within an algorithm.

Input

An operation that causes data values from the outside world to be brought into the algorithm.

Iteration

The repetitive execution of a block of operations.

Output

An operation that causes computed values to be sent to the outside world for viewing or saving.

Primitive operation

An operation that can be directly understood by the computing agent executing the algorithm and which does not have to be further clarified or explained.

Pseudocode

A notation used to design algorithms. It uses English constructs

Sorting

The task of putting a list of values into numeric or alphabetical order.

Boolean expression

An expression that can evaluate only to true or false.

Gigabyte

One billion bytes.

Program

an algorithm that is written in a programming language that runs on a computer

Control Structures

a block of programming that determines which part of the program is executed next. There are three types of structures: sequence

Computational Artifact

an object created by a human being that involves the use of computation in some way

Event Driven Programming

a programming approach whereby the program's behavior is controlled by writing code that responds to various events that occur

Hardware

the large and small physical components that make up a computers such as the computer's keyboard or its processor.

Software

the computer programs that make up a computer system such as the mobile apps we will be creating in this course.

Abstraction

one of the seven big ideas of the CS Principles curriculum. An abstraction is a simplified and general representation of some complex object or process. One example --we'll encounter many in this course

Binary Number

a number written in the binary system

Blacklist

in internet terminology

Character

any symbol that requires one byte of storage

Cyberspace

a metaphor for describing the non-physical terrain created by computer systems

Data

data is distinct information that is formatted in a special way. Data exists in a variety of forms

Data Center

are physical or virtual infrastructures used by enterprises to house computer

Data Network

a telecommunications network which allows computers to exchange data

Disk Drive

a randomly addressable and rewritable storage device

Intellectual Property

refers to any property that is created using original thought. Traditional intellectual property include patents

Network

a group of two or more computer systems linked together

Processor

short for microprocessor or CPU

Social Networking

a social structure made of nodes that are generally individuals or organizations. A social network represents relationships and flows between people

Whitelist

a generic name for a list of email address or IP addresses that are considered to be spam free

Analog

a device or system that represents changing values as continuously variable physical quantities

ASCII

a code for representing English characters as numbers

Cloud Computing

comparable to grid computing

Cryptography

the art of protecting information by transforming it into an unreadable format

Digital

any system based on discontinuous data or events. Computers are digital machines because at the basic level they can distinguish between just two values

Digital Signal Processing

(DSP) refers to manipulating analog information

Download

to copy data (usually an entire file) from a main source to a peripheral device

Megabyte

used to describe data storage