CSCI 1300 Test #1 Study Guide
The basic format of all tests for this course is a two-part test:
- The first part will be multiple choice, to be answered on a GREEN Scantron
sheet (no other color Scantron sheet will be accepted). Please
make sure you have the appropriate Scantron sheet and at least one #2 pencil
with you. This part of the test will be closed-book, closed-notes.
- The second part of the test will consist of several hands-on problems to
solve. These problems will be either brief essay/discussion questions and/or
small problems to solve. You will be allowed to use your book and notes on
this part of the test.
Questions on the exam will come from multiple sources:
- Textbook readings
- Powerpoint slides and lectures
- Supplemental readings listed in the course schedule, particularly those
for essays
To do well on the exam, it is important that you:
- Read each question carefully.
- Answer only the question that is asked; particularly with the second part,
do not spend your time trying to do more than the problem states.
- Ask for clarification on any question that you don't understand.
Major topics
- History of computing -- specific dates are not important; however, relative
order of events is
- Important people -- particularly Pascal, Babbage, Lovelace, von Neumann,
Hopper, Berners-Lee, Turing
- Important events -- focus particularly on WW II era through the early
1960s
- Important theoretical concepts -- Boolean logic/algebra, stored-program concept, von Neumann architecture,
interpretation of bytes as information of many different types
- Important inventions -- transistors, integrated circuits, programming language evolution
- Data representation
- Bits/bytes/words
- Relative sizes -- 1 byte = 8 bits, number of bits in a word depends
on CPU structure
- Uses -- relationship between physical and logical units of data
1 bit -- smallest physical unit of data
1 byte -- smallest logical unit of data
1 word -- length of a CPU register, smallest unit of data manipulated by CPU
- Relationships to hardware and logic (general concepts)
- Binary/octal/hexadecimal number systems
Reference the Data Representation study
sheet as needed.
- Conversions between one system and another -- focus on bases 2/8/10/16
- Basic binary/octal/hexadecimal arithmetic (addition only)
- Character representation systems
- ASCII
- Unicode -- reason for its creation, relationship with ASCII
- Text compression concepts -- reasons for using, understanding of
keyword encoding issues
- Video and audio data
- Vector versus raster graphics -- advantages and disadvantages of
each
- The RGB color scheme -- use of pixel values
- Video and audio compression -- lossless vs. lossy, specific formats
(JPEG, GIF, MP3)
- Low-level hardware concepts
- Boolean logic (AND, OR, NOT) -- know how it works
- Gates (AND, OR, NOT, XOR, NAND, NOR) -- know how each works, appropriate
symbols
- Representation methods -- Boolean expressions, truth tables, logic diagrams.
Be able to go from one to the other two.
- Circuits
- Construction from gates -- take an expression and create a truth
table or logic diagram, take a logic diagram and create a truth table
or expression.
- Sequential versus combinational circuits