AP CSP - Vocabulary

Bit

a contraction of "Binary Digit"; the single unit of information in a computer, typically represented as a 0 or 1

Byte

8 bits

Binary

a way of representing information using only two options

Binary Number System

a system for representing numbers using combinations of the digits 0 and 1

Decimal Number System

a system for representing numbers using combinations of the digits 0 - 9

Overflow Error

an incorrect value from attempting to represent a number that is too large

Round-off Error

an incorrect value from attempting to represent a number that is too precise

Digital Data

data that changes discreetly through a finite set of possible values

Analog Data

data with values that change continuously, or smoothly, over time, for example, music and colors of a painting

Sampling

a process for creating a digital representation of analog data by measuring the analog data at regular intervals

Pixel

the fundamental unit of a digital image, typically a tiny square or dot which contains a single point of color of a larger image

Resolution

the dimensions by which you can measure how many pixels are on a screen

RGB

the RGB color model that uses varying intensities of (R)ed, (G)reen, and (B)lue light added together to reproduce a broad array of colors

Data Compression

a process for reducing the number of bits needed to represent a piece of information

Lossless Compression

a process for reducing the number of bits needed to represent something without losing any information; this process is reversible

Lossy Compression

a process for reducing the number of bits needed to represent something in which some information is lost

Intellectual Property

a work or invention that is the result of creativity, such as a piece of writing or a design, to which one has rights

Creative Commons

A collection of public copyright licenses that enable the free distribution of an otherwise copyrighted work. It allows artists to declare how they want their creations to be shared and used

Open Access

content free of any and all restrictions on access and free of many restrictions on use

Open Source

programs that are made freely available and may be redistributed and modified

Computing Innovation

Includes a program as an integral part of its function. Can be physical (e.g. self-driving car), non-physical computing software (e.g. picture editing software), or non-physical computing concepts (e.g., e-commerce).

Personally Identifiable Information (PII)

Information about an individual that identifies, links, relates, or describes them.

Phishing

A technique that attempts to trick a user into providing personal information. That personal information can then be used to access sensitive online resources, such as bank accounts and emails.

Keylogging

The use of a program to record every keystroke made by a computer user in order to gain fraudulent access to passwords and other confidential information.

Malware

Software intended to damage a computing system or to take partial control over its operation.

Rogue Access Point

A wireless access point that give unauthorized access to secure networks.

Encryption

A process of encoding messages to keep them secret, so only "authorized" parties can read it.

Decryption

A process that reverses encryption, taking a secret message and reproducing the original plain text.

Symmetric Encryption

Involves one key for both encryption and decryption.

Asymmetric Encryption

Pairs a public key for encryption and a private key for decryption. The sender does not need the receiver's private key to encrypt a message, but the receiver's private key is required to decrypt the message.

Freeware

Untrustworthy (often free) downloads from freeware or shareware sites can contain malware.

Multi-factor Authentication

A system that requires at least two steps to unlock protected information; each step adds a new layer of security that must be broken to gain unauthorized access

Strong password

Something that is easy for a user to remember but would be difficult for someone else to guess based on knowledge of that user.

Virus

A malicious program that can copy itself and gain access to a computer in an unauthorized way. Computer viruses often attach themselves to legitimate programs and start running independently on a computer.

Caesar Cipher

A technique for encryption that shifts the alphabet by some number of characters

Random Substitution

An encoding technique that maps each letter of the alphabet randomly to different letters or characters.

Cipher

The generic term for a technique (or algorithm) that performs encryption.

Cracking Encryption

When you attempt to decode a secret message without knowing all the specifics of the cipher.

Computer Virus Scanning Software

Protects a computer system against infection.

DDoS Attack

Hacker floods a server with numerous bogus requests so that legitimate users can no longer access the server.

Certificate Authority (CA)

A trusted third-party agency that is responsible for issuing digital certificates.

GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation)

A group of regulations implemented by the European Union (EU) to protect personal data of EU citizens.

Parameter

A variable in a function definition. Used as a placeholder for values that will be passed through the function.

Argument

The value passed to the parameter of a function.

Return

Used to return the flow of control to the point where the procedure (also known as a function) was called and to return the value of expression.

Procedural Abstraction

Identifying repetitive code statements and placing them in one procedure that can be referenced by many objects

Library

A group of functions (procedures) that may be used in creating new programs.

API: Application Program Interface

Specifications for how functions in a library behave and can be used.

Modularity

The subdivision of a computer program into separate subprograms that are each responsible for one aspect of hte program's functionality

Sequencing

The application of each step of an algorithm in the order in which the code statements are given.

Selection

Determines which parts of an algorithm are executed based on a condition being true or false.

Iteration

A repetitive portion of an algorithm which repeats a specified number of times or until a given condition is met.

Algorithm

A step-by-step procedure or set of rules for solving a specific problem or task

MOD operation

The remainder that is left after a number is divided by another number.

Function

A named group of programming instructions. Also referred to as a "procedure".

Function Call

A command that executes the code within a function.

Conditional Statement

Affect the sequential flow of control by executing different statements based on the value of a Boolean expression.

Heuristic

a problem solving approach (algorithm) to find a satisfactory solution where finding an optimal or exact solution is impractical or impossible. Often used in AI, optimization problems, and decision-making processes

List

An ordered collection of elements.

Element

An individual value in a list that is assigned a unique index.

Index

A common method for referencing the elements in a list or string using numbers.

Iteration

A repetitive portion of an algorithm which repeats a specified number of times or until a given condition is met.

Infinite Loop

Occurs when the ending condition will never evaluate to true.

Traversal

The process of accessing each item in a list one at a time.

Append

Add elements to the end of a list.

Data Abstraction

Manage complexity in programs by giving a collection of data a name without referencing the specific details of the representation, so programmers can work with the information while ignoring lower-level details

Loops

Running the same sequence of code multiple times.

Logic Error

A mistake in the algorithm or program that causes it to behave incorrectly or unexpectedly.

Simulation

Abstractions of more complex objects or phenomena for a specific purpose.

Substring

Part of an existing string.

While Loop

A programming construct used to repeat a set of commands as long as a boolean condition is true.

For Loop

Loops that have a predetermined beginning, end, and increment (step interval).

Filter

Creating a subset of elements from an original list.

Reduce

Taking a list and reducing it down to a single element.

Citizen Science

scientific research conducted in whole or part by distributed individuals, many of whom may not be scientists, who contribute relevant data to research using their own computing devices.

Cleaning Data

a process that makes the data uniform without changing its meaning (e.g., replacing all equivalent abbreviations, spellings, and capitalizations with the same word).

Correlation

a relationship between two pieces of data, typically referring to the amount that one varies in relation to the other.

Crowdsourcing

the practice of obtaining input or information from a large number of people via the Internet.

Information

the collection of facts and patterns extracted from data

Data bias

data that does not accurately reflect the full population or phenomenon being studied

Data filtering

choosing a smaller subset of a data set to use for analysis, for example by eliminating / keeping only certain rows in a table

Data set

a collection of related sets of information

Database

an organized collection of structured information, or data, typically stored electronically in a computer system

Parallel systems

the simultaneous use of multiple computer resources that can include a single computer with multiple processors

Bar graph

a diagram in which the numerical values of variables are represented by the height or length of lines or rectangles of equal width

Histogram

a diagram consisting of rectangles whose area is proportional to the frequency of a variable and whose width is equal to the class interval

Scatterplot

a graph in which the values of two variables are plotted along two axes, the pattern of the resulting points revealing any correlation present

Crosstab

a type of table in a matrix format that displays the multivariate frequency distribution of the variables

Algorithm bias

systematic and repeatable errors in a computer system that create "unfair" outcomes, such as "privileging" one category over another

Open data

data that is openly accessible, exploitable, editable and shared by anyone for any purpose

Machine learning

a type of artificial intelligence that leverages massive amounts of data so that computers can improve the accuracy of actions and predictions on their own without additional programming.

User Interface

The inputs and outputs that allow a user to interact with a piece of software. Can include a variety of forms such as buttons, menus, images, text, and graphics.

Input

Data that are sent to a computer for processing by a program. Can come in a variety of forms, such as tactile interaction, audio, visuals, or text.

Output

Any data that are sent from a program to a device. Can come in a variety of forms, such as tactile interaction, audio, visuals, or text.

Program Statement

A command or instruction. Sometimes also referred to as a code statement.

Program

A collection of program statements. Can run (or "execute") one command at a time.

Sequential Programming

Program statements run in order, from top to bottom.

Event Driven Programming

Some program statements run when triggered by an event, like a mouse click or a key press.

Documentation

A written description of how a command or piece of code works or was developed.