Computer Science Concepts and Terminology

Front

In Zoe's computer science class, she learned that a single on/off or 0/1 in a computer's transistor is known as a

Back

bit

Answer explanation

A single on/off state in a computer's transistor is represented as a 'bit', which is the basic unit of information in computing. Other options like byte, nibble, and hex represent larger groupings or formats.

Front

Which term is not a measure of the number of bytes in a computer: Zilobyte, Kilobyte, Megabyte, Terabyte?

Back

Zilobyte

Answer explanation

A 'Zilobyte' is not a recognized unit of measurement for data storage. The other options—Kilobyte, Megabyte, and Terabyte—are standard measures of bytes in computing.

Front

Isla discovers that the system which represents alpha-numeric data in computers, such as A = 65 = 01000001, is called:

Back

ASCII

Answer explanation

ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange) is the system that represents alpha-numeric data in computers, where each character is assigned a unique numerical value, such as A = 65 = 01000001.

Front

Which of the following is the base 16 number system?
Options:
Hexadecimal,
Binary,
Decimal,
Octal

Back

Hexadecimal

Answer explanation

The base 16 number system is known as Hexadecimal. It uses digits 0-9 and letters A-F to represent values, making it distinct from Binary (base 2), Decimal (base 10), and Octal (base 8). Thus, the correct answer is Hexadecimal.

Front

What is the process called when representing a range of characters using a specific conversion system, like ASCII?

Back

Encoding

Answer explanation

Encoding is the process of converting data into a specific format, such as ASCII, to represent a range of characters. This is essential for data storage and transmission, making 'Encoding' the correct choice.

Front

What does CTF stand for in the context of a cybersecurity workshop where teams solve security challenges to find hidden flags?

Back

Capture the Flag

Answer explanation

CTF stands for Capture the Flag, a popular cybersecurity competition where participants solve challenges to find hidden flags. The other options do not accurately represent this term.

Front

How many bits are there in a byte?

Back

8.0

Answer explanation

A byte consists of 8 bits. This is a standard unit of digital information in computing and telecommunications, making 8.0 the correct answer.

Front

Emma wants to send a secret message to Lily, but she doesn't want anyone else to read it. She decides to scramble the message so that it is unreadable to anyone except Lily, who knows the trick to decoding it. This process is known as...

Back

Cryptography

Answer explanation

Cryptography is the practice of scrambling data to make it unreadable to unauthorized users. Only those with the correct key or method can decode it, making it essential for secure communication.

Front

When Charlotte sends a secret message to Avery, the data that has been encrypted is called...

Back

Ciphertext

Answer explanation

The data that has been encrypted is referred to as 'Ciphertext'. This term specifically denotes the output of the encryption process, distinguishing it from 'Plaintext', which is the original, unencrypted data.

Front

What method of encryption are Abigail and Ethan using with a Scytale cipher?

Back

Transposition

Answer explanation

The method described is transposition, where the order of letters is rearranged. The Scytale cipher exemplifies this by wrapping a ribbon around a cylinder to change letter positions, confirming that transposition is the correct answer.