WGU D278 - Scripting and Programming
Foundations Exam Graded A+
Activity diagram - ANSWER-A flowchart used to describe the flow of an activity or set of
activities.
Agile approach (spiral approach) - ANSWER-In contrast, a program can be built by
doing small amounts of each SDLC phases in sequence, and then repeating.
Algorithm - ANSWER-A sequence of instructions that solves a problem.
Algorithm time efficiency - ANSWER-The number of calculations required to solve a
problem. For the same problem, some algorithms may be much more time efficient than
others.
Analysis phase - ANSWER-Defines a program's goals.
Argument - ANSWER-A value provided to a function's parameter during a function call.
Example: A pizza area function might be called as PrintPizzaArea(12.0).
Array - ANSWER-An ordered list of items of a given data type, like an array of integers
or an array of floats. Array indices start from 0, not 1.
Assignment statement - ANSWER-Assigns a variable with a value, such as x = 5. An
assignment statement's left side must be a variable. The right side is an
expression.Examples: x = 5, y = a, or z = w + 2.
Behavioral diagram - ANSWER-Visualizes dynamic behavior of software, such as the
flow of an algorithm.
Boolean - ANSWER-Refers to a quantity that has only two possible values, true or false.
Branch - ANSWER-A sequence of statements only executed under a certain condition.
Class diagram - ANSWER-A structural diagram that can be used to visually model the
classes of a computer program, including member variables and functions. A *class* is
a code blueprint for creating an object that is composed of data members and functions
(sometimes called methods) that operate on those data members.
Comment - ANSWER-Text added to a program, read by humans to understand the
code, but ignored by the program when executed.
Compiled language - ANSWER-First converted by a tool (*compiler*) into machine
code, which can run on a particular machine. Examples include C, C++, and Java.
, Computational thinking - ANSWER-Creating a sequence of instructions to solve a
problem.
Constant - ANSWER-A named value item that holds a value that cannot change.
Cursor - ANSWER-Indicates where the next output item will be placed in the output.
Design phase - ANSWER-Defines specifics of how to build a program.
Do-while loop - ANSWER-A loop that first executes the loop body's statements, then
checks the loop condition. Compared to a while loop, a do-while loop is useful when the
loop should iterate at least once.
Dynamically typed - ANSWER-A variable's type may change while a program executes,
usually based on what is assigned to the variable. (Dynamic means changing). Python
is a popular example.
Element - ANSWER-Each item in an array.
Epsilon - ANSWER-The difference threshold indicating that floating-point numbers are
equal.
Equality operator - ANSWER-Checks whether two operand's values are the same (==)
or different (=!). Note that equality is ==, not just =.
Expression - ANSWER-A combination of items, like variables, literals, operators, and
parentheses, that evaluates to a value. Example: 2 * (x+1)
Floating-point literal - ANSWER-A number with a fractional part, even if that fraction is
0, such as 1.0, 0.0, or 99.573.
Floating-point number - ANSWER-A real number, like 98.6, 0.0001, or -666.667.
For loop - ANSWER-A loop consisting of a loop variable initialization, a loop expression,
and a loop variable update that typically describes iterating *for* a specific number of
times.
Function - ANSWER-A list of statements executed by invoking the function's name, with
such invoking known as a function call.
Function call - ANSWER-An invocation of a function's name, causing the function's
statements to execute.
Function definition - ANSWER-Consists of the new function's name and a block of
statements. The function's name can be any valid identifier.
Foundations Exam Graded A+
Activity diagram - ANSWER-A flowchart used to describe the flow of an activity or set of
activities.
Agile approach (spiral approach) - ANSWER-In contrast, a program can be built by
doing small amounts of each SDLC phases in sequence, and then repeating.
Algorithm - ANSWER-A sequence of instructions that solves a problem.
Algorithm time efficiency - ANSWER-The number of calculations required to solve a
problem. For the same problem, some algorithms may be much more time efficient than
others.
Analysis phase - ANSWER-Defines a program's goals.
Argument - ANSWER-A value provided to a function's parameter during a function call.
Example: A pizza area function might be called as PrintPizzaArea(12.0).
Array - ANSWER-An ordered list of items of a given data type, like an array of integers
or an array of floats. Array indices start from 0, not 1.
Assignment statement - ANSWER-Assigns a variable with a value, such as x = 5. An
assignment statement's left side must be a variable. The right side is an
expression.Examples: x = 5, y = a, or z = w + 2.
Behavioral diagram - ANSWER-Visualizes dynamic behavior of software, such as the
flow of an algorithm.
Boolean - ANSWER-Refers to a quantity that has only two possible values, true or false.
Branch - ANSWER-A sequence of statements only executed under a certain condition.
Class diagram - ANSWER-A structural diagram that can be used to visually model the
classes of a computer program, including member variables and functions. A *class* is
a code blueprint for creating an object that is composed of data members and functions
(sometimes called methods) that operate on those data members.
Comment - ANSWER-Text added to a program, read by humans to understand the
code, but ignored by the program when executed.
Compiled language - ANSWER-First converted by a tool (*compiler*) into machine
code, which can run on a particular machine. Examples include C, C++, and Java.
, Computational thinking - ANSWER-Creating a sequence of instructions to solve a
problem.
Constant - ANSWER-A named value item that holds a value that cannot change.
Cursor - ANSWER-Indicates where the next output item will be placed in the output.
Design phase - ANSWER-Defines specifics of how to build a program.
Do-while loop - ANSWER-A loop that first executes the loop body's statements, then
checks the loop condition. Compared to a while loop, a do-while loop is useful when the
loop should iterate at least once.
Dynamically typed - ANSWER-A variable's type may change while a program executes,
usually based on what is assigned to the variable. (Dynamic means changing). Python
is a popular example.
Element - ANSWER-Each item in an array.
Epsilon - ANSWER-The difference threshold indicating that floating-point numbers are
equal.
Equality operator - ANSWER-Checks whether two operand's values are the same (==)
or different (=!). Note that equality is ==, not just =.
Expression - ANSWER-A combination of items, like variables, literals, operators, and
parentheses, that evaluates to a value. Example: 2 * (x+1)
Floating-point literal - ANSWER-A number with a fractional part, even if that fraction is
0, such as 1.0, 0.0, or 99.573.
Floating-point number - ANSWER-A real number, like 98.6, 0.0001, or -666.667.
For loop - ANSWER-A loop consisting of a loop variable initialization, a loop expression,
and a loop variable update that typically describes iterating *for* a specific number of
times.
Function - ANSWER-A list of statements executed by invoking the function's name, with
such invoking known as a function call.
Function call - ANSWER-An invocation of a function's name, causing the function's
statements to execute.
Function definition - ANSWER-Consists of the new function's name and a block of
statements. The function's name can be any valid identifier.
