Advanced Computer Science Placement Questions with Answers
An algorithm has been developed to compute the sum of all the elements in a list of integers. Which of
the following programming structures must be added to the existing algorithm so that the new
algorithm computes the sum of only the even integers in the list? (2)
(A) Iteration
(B) Searching
(C) Selection
(D) Sequencing - Answers C. Selection
The code segment below uses the procedure IsFound (list, item), which returns true if item appears in
list and returns false otherwise. The list resultList is initially empty.
FOR EACH item IN inputList1
{
IF (IsFound (inputList2, item)
{
APPEND (resultList, item)
}
}
Which of the following best describes the contents of resultList after the code segment is executed? (2)
(A) All elements in inputList1 followed by all elements in inputList2
(B) Only elements that appear in both inputList1 and inputList2
(C) Only elements that appear in either inputList1 or inputList2 but not in both lists
(D) Only elements that appear in inputList1 but not in inputList2 - Answers (B) Only elements that
appear in both inputList1 and inputList2
A programmer is writing a program that is intended to be able to process large amounts of data. Which
of the following considerations is LEAST likely to affect the ability of the program to process larger data
sets? (2)
(A) How long the program takes to run
(B) How many programming statements the program contains
, (C) How much memory the program requires as it runs
(D) How much storage space the program requires as it runs - Answers (B) How many programming
statements the program contains
Which of the following statements are true about using a high-level programming language instead of a
lower-level language? (2)
Programs written in a high-level language are generally easier for people to read than programs written
in a low-level language.
A high-level language provides programmers with more abstractions than a low-level language.
Programs written in a high-level language are generally easier to debug than programs written in a low-
level language.
(A) I only
(B) I and III only
(C) II and III only
(D) I, II, and III - Answers (D) I, II, and III
A student is recording a song on her computer. When the recording is finished, she saves a copy on her
computer. The student notices that the saved copy is of lower sound quality than the original recording.
Which of the following could be a possible explanation for the difference in sound quality? (2)
(A) The song was saved using fewer bits per second than the original song.
(B) The song was saved using more bits per second than the original song.
(C) The song was saved using a lossless compression technique.
(D) Some information is lost every time a file is saved from one location on a computer to another
location. - Answers (A) The song was saved using fewer bits per second than the original song.
Computers are often used to search through large sets of data to find useful patterns in the data. Which
of the following tasks is NOT an example where searching for patterns is needed to produce useful
information? (2)
(A) A credit card company analyzing credit card purchases to identify potential fraudulent charges
(B) A grocery store analyzing customers' past purchases to suggest new products the customer may be
interested in
(C) A high school analyzing student grades to identify the students with the top ten highest grade point
averages
An algorithm has been developed to compute the sum of all the elements in a list of integers. Which of
the following programming structures must be added to the existing algorithm so that the new
algorithm computes the sum of only the even integers in the list? (2)
(A) Iteration
(B) Searching
(C) Selection
(D) Sequencing - Answers C. Selection
The code segment below uses the procedure IsFound (list, item), which returns true if item appears in
list and returns false otherwise. The list resultList is initially empty.
FOR EACH item IN inputList1
{
IF (IsFound (inputList2, item)
{
APPEND (resultList, item)
}
}
Which of the following best describes the contents of resultList after the code segment is executed? (2)
(A) All elements in inputList1 followed by all elements in inputList2
(B) Only elements that appear in both inputList1 and inputList2
(C) Only elements that appear in either inputList1 or inputList2 but not in both lists
(D) Only elements that appear in inputList1 but not in inputList2 - Answers (B) Only elements that
appear in both inputList1 and inputList2
A programmer is writing a program that is intended to be able to process large amounts of data. Which
of the following considerations is LEAST likely to affect the ability of the program to process larger data
sets? (2)
(A) How long the program takes to run
(B) How many programming statements the program contains
, (C) How much memory the program requires as it runs
(D) How much storage space the program requires as it runs - Answers (B) How many programming
statements the program contains
Which of the following statements are true about using a high-level programming language instead of a
lower-level language? (2)
Programs written in a high-level language are generally easier for people to read than programs written
in a low-level language.
A high-level language provides programmers with more abstractions than a low-level language.
Programs written in a high-level language are generally easier to debug than programs written in a low-
level language.
(A) I only
(B) I and III only
(C) II and III only
(D) I, II, and III - Answers (D) I, II, and III
A student is recording a song on her computer. When the recording is finished, she saves a copy on her
computer. The student notices that the saved copy is of lower sound quality than the original recording.
Which of the following could be a possible explanation for the difference in sound quality? (2)
(A) The song was saved using fewer bits per second than the original song.
(B) The song was saved using more bits per second than the original song.
(C) The song was saved using a lossless compression technique.
(D) Some information is lost every time a file is saved from one location on a computer to another
location. - Answers (A) The song was saved using fewer bits per second than the original song.
Computers are often used to search through large sets of data to find useful patterns in the data. Which
of the following tasks is NOT an example where searching for patterns is needed to produce useful
information? (2)
(A) A credit card company analyzing credit card purchases to identify potential fraudulent charges
(B) A grocery store analyzing customers' past purchases to suggest new products the customer may be
interested in
(C) A high school analyzing student grades to identify the students with the top ten highest grade point
averages
