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Computer Science Yr 10-11 > Unit 3 > Flashcards

Unit 3 Flashcards

1
Q

what is the purpose of the CPU

A

the Central Processing Unit processes instructions and data that are input into the computer to output the result

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2
Q

what does the CPU consist of

A

control unit(CU)
Arithmetic and Logic Unit(ALU)
registers and buses

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3
Q

what is the ALU

A

arithmetic and logic unit
does the required arithmetic or logic such as operations
computers can have multiple ALU’s

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4
Q

what is a microprocessor

A

a type of integrated circuit on a single microchip

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5
Q

what is the CU

A

control Unit
reads instructions from memory
The control units ensures synchronisation of data flow and program instructions through the computer

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6
Q

what is the system clock

A

used to produce timing signals on the control bus to ensure synchronisation
without it the computer would crash

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7
Q

what is the CIR

A

current instruction register
stores the current instruction being decoded and executed

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8
Q

what is the ACC

A

accumulator
stores data temporarily thats used for the calculations in the ALU

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9
Q

what is the MAR

A

memory address register
stores the address of the memory location currently being read from or written to

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10
Q

what is the MDR

A

memory data register
stores data which has just been read from memory is about to be written to memory

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11
Q

what is the PC

A

program counter
stores the address where the next instruction to be read can be found

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12
Q

what are system buses

A

used in computers as parallel transmission components
address bus, data bus, control bus

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13
Q

whats the address bus used for

A

carries addresses throughout the computer system
it is unidirectional(one direction)

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14
Q

what is the data bus

A

bidirectional
used to carry data from CPU to memory and vice versa
also to and from input and output devices

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15
Q

what is the control bus

A

bidirectional
carries signals from the control unit to all other computer components

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16
Q

what is the fetch - decode - execute cycle

A
  • the PC contains the address of the memory location of the next instruction
  • address is then copied from the PC to the MAR through the address bus
  • the data at the location are then copied temporarily into the MDR
  • the contents of the MDR are then copied and placed into the CIR
  • value in PC is incremented by 1 so it points to the next instruction which has to be found
  • instruction is decoded and executed by sending out signals through the control bus to the various components of the computer system
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17
Q

how can width of buses affect computer performance

A

increasing the width allows more data to flow meaning the CPU works faster

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18
Q

what is overclocking

A

if the clock speed becomes higher than the computer was designed for can cause the computer to be unsynchronised and cause the computer to crash
can lead to overheating and unreliable performance

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19
Q

what are cache memories

A

can also improve CPU performance
located inside the CPU meaning faster access times
stores frequently accessed instructions and datas
larger the cache size the better the CPU performance

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20
Q

how does the use of different number of cores affect performance

A

using more cores can improve computer performance
however increasing the number of cores means the the CPU needs to communicate more with each core so potential performance is reduced

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21
Q

what is instruction sets

A

a list of all commands that can be processed by a CPU and the commands are machine code

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22
Q

what are embedded systems

A

combination of hardware and software which is designed to carry out a specific set of functions

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23
Q

features of an embedded system

A

they are small
cheap to make
consume little power
can be controlled remotely
reliable due to mass production

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24
Q

what is a barcode

A

a series of dark and light parallel lines of varying thickness

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25
what devices can be found at a checkout in supermarkets
keypad(input) screen/monitor(output) speaker(output) printer(output) card reader (input) touchscreen(input)
26
how do capacitive touch screens work
when fingers touch the screen, the electrostatic field of the conductive layer is changed and it can calculate where the change took place there are 2 types, surface and projective
27
how do surface capacitive screens work
sensors are placed at the corner of the screen and the finger draws currents only works with a bare finger or stylus
28
how do projective capacitive screens work
they create a 3D electrostatic field when a finger touches the screen it disturbs the electrostatic filed this system works with gloves and also allows pinching and sliding
29
advantages of capacitive screens
better image clarity than resistive durable screens projective allows multitouch
30
disadvantages of capacitive screens
surface capacitive only works with bare fingers sensitive to electromagnetic radiation
31
how do infrared touch screens work
use a glass screen with an array of sensors and infrared transmitters when one of the infrared beams is reduced the place where the screen is touched is located
32
advantages of infrared touch screens
allows multi touch facility has good screen durability isnt affected by scratched or cracked screen
33
disadvantages of infrared screens
can be sensitive to water or moisture possible for accidental activation can be sensitive to light interference
34
how do resistive screens work
there are 2 resistive layers when the top layer is touched it makes contact with the bottom layer resulting in a flow of electricity the point of contact is where there is a change in voltage
35
advantages of resistive screens
good resistance to dust and water can be used with gloves
36
disadvantages of resistive screens
low touch sensitivity doesnt support multitouch faciliy poor visibility in strong sunlight vulnerable to scratches on the screen
37
what is an actuator used for
actuators are used to start and stop machines or open and close valves is a mechanical device like a solenoid or a motor
38
how do digital light projectors work
they use millions of micro mirrors on a small digital micromirror device to create a dark or light pixel requires a bright light source to pass over it
39
what are LCD projectors
Liquid crystal display projectors works by passing a high intensity beam of light through an LCD display and then onto a screen
40
what are advantages of DLP projector
higher contrast ratio lasts longer runs quieter and is smaller
41
disadvantages of DLP projector
no grey components saturation of color isnt that good
42
advantages of LCD projector
gives sharper image better color saturation more efficient in use of energy
43
disadvantages of LCD projector
contrast ratios are not as good have a limited life tend to degrade over time
44
how do thermal bubble inkjet printers work
heat causes the ink to form a tiny bubble and as the bubble expands some of the ink is ejected onto the paper a vacuum is created causing fresh ink to be drawn
45
how do piezoelectric inkjet printers work
a crystal is given an electric charge whcih makes it vibrate and forces ink onto the page
46
how do laser printers work
dry ink is used the paper is negatively charged and attracts the positively charged drum of ink toner causing the toner to stick to the page and print out the text or data
47
when are inkjet printers used
used to print when only a few pages of good quality is needed
48
when are laser printers used
when high quality quality and high amounts of printouts are required for fliers or posters
49
what are 3D printers used for
used to produce solid objects that can acutally work
50
what is drect 3D printing
a printhead moves left adn right and up and down to build up the layers of the object
51
what is binder 3D printing
uses 2 passes for each layer first it sprays dry powder and then secondly, sprays a biner to form a solid layer
52
what can 3D printing be used for
making of prosthetic limbs making parts of items that no longer exist fashion and art
53
What are LED screens
made up of tiny Light Emitting Diodes the electric current is varied in each diode creating a vast range of colors
54
what are LCD screens
Liquid crystal display they require light to work so usually LED technology is used to provide backlighting for the screen
55
what is OLED
Organic light emitting diodes use organic material between two charged electrodes when an electric field is applied to the electrodes, they give off light
56
advantages of OLED compared to LED and LCD
the layers are thinner, lighter and more flexible give off a brighter light do not require backlighting like LCD so uses less power can be made into thin sheets large field of view
57
what are loudspeakers
output devices that produce sound
58
how do loudspeakers work
digital data is passed through a digital to analogue converter where its changed to an electric current passed through an amplifier which creates a current large enough to drive a loudspeaker then fed into a loudspeaker
59
what are sensors
input devices which read or measure their surroundings
60
what is primary memory
directly addressable by the CPU RAM, ROM, cache memory
61
what is secondary storage
not directly addressable by the CPU all are non volatile devices can be external or internal HDD, SSD, DVD, memory stick
62
what is Random access memory
when applications are run, data is retrieved from secondary storage and placed temporarily into RAM
63
what are features of RAM
can be written to or read from and data can be changed by the user used to store data, files or part of the operating system currently in use it is volatile which means memory contents are lost when powering off the computer
64
what happens when the size of the RAM is larger
the computer will operate faster
65
what happens when RAM becomes 'full'
it never runs out of memory but becomes slower and slower. The CPU has to continually access the secondary data storage device to overwrite old data on the RAM with new data
66
what is DRAM
dynamic RAM consists of transistors and capacitors needs to be constantly refreshed
67
advantages of DRAM
less expensive consume less power have higher memory capacity
68
what is SRAM
Static Ram doesnt need to be constantly refreshed since it uses flip flops found in memory caches in the CPU
69
advantages of SRAM
doesnt need to be constantly refreshed has faster data access times
70
features of ROM
Read only memory they are non volatile contents cannot be changed or written to, only read used to store data that the computer needs to acess when powering up (BIOS) and start up instructions
71
What is a HDD
Hard disk drive is a form of magnetic storage
72
how do HDD's work
data is stored on the magnetic surfaces of the disks read-write heads are used to read and write data to the disks data is stored on the surface in sectors and tracks
73
disadvantages of HDD
slower access times than RAM and the effects of latency are very significant over time, the HDD will become fragmented and the performance will keep deteriorating
74
What are SSD's
Solid State Drives they have no moving parts and data is retrieved quicker data is stored by controlling the electrons within NAND or NOR chips
75
advantages of SSD over HDD
they are more reliable lighter lower power consumption run much cooler than HDD's they are thinner data access is considerably faster than HDD
76
what is the main drawback of SSD
the longevity of the technology
77
what are memory sticks
use solid state technology and connect through the computer through the USB port they are small, lightweight devices
78
What are CD/DVDs
optical storage devices laser light is used to read and write data to adn from the surface of the disk
79
where is the data stored on CDs/DVDs
stored in pits and lands
80
difference between DVD and CD
DVD can store more since they can store data on both sides while CD's can only use one side
81
what are blu-ray discs
also optical storage media able to store much more data since the pits and lands are much smaller also come with a secure encryption system
82
why are blu-rays better than DVD
able to store much more data and record high definition movies
83
what is virtual memory
when the RAM becomes full, data is loaded into memory from HDD or SSD whenever required
84
benefits of virtual memory
programs can be larger than physical memory and still be executed there is no need to waste memory with data this isnt being used reduces the need to buy more expensive RAM memory
85
what is the problem with virtual memory
as more and more data is used, the processing speed of the computer is reduced. a point is reached where execution of a process comes to a halt since theres so much data being moved this is known as the thrash point
86
what is cloud storage
the method of data storage where data is stored on remote servers
87
what is public cloud
the storage environment where the customer and cloud storage provide are different companies
88
what is a private cloud
the is storage provided by a dedicated environment behind a company firwall. customer and client are integrated
89
what is hybrid cloud
combination of private and public some data resides in the private cloud and less sensitive data is stored on a public cloud
90
benefits of cloud storage
can be accessed anytime anywhere in the world with internet there is no need for a customer to carry an external storage device or the computer to retrieve information allows recovery of data offers unlimited storage capacity
91
disadvantages of cloud storage
if they have a slow internet access they will be unable to access their data costs can be high cloud storage company can fail and all data is lost
92
what is NIC
network interface card needed to allow device to connect to a network
93
what is the MAC address
made up of 48 bits Media Access Control found inside the NIC cannot be changed
94
What is the IP address
when a device connects to a private network, a router assigns a private IP address that is only unique on that network however, when the device is connected to the internet, the device is given a unique public IP address and no other device will have the same address
95
what is the difference between MAC and IP
MAC identifies the physical address of a device on the network and is assigned by the manafacture IP identifies the global address on the internet and may not be necessarily unique
96
what are static IP addresses
they are permanently assigned to a device by the internet and dont change each time a device logs onto the internet
97
what are dynamic IP addressed
the IP address could be different everytime a device connects to the internet for greater privacy
98
what are routers
enables data packets to be routed between different networks

Computer Science Yr 10-11 (6 decks)

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