AP COMPUTER SCIENCE PRINCIPLES VOCABULARY QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Agile software development - (ANSWER)An approach to software development that emphasizes a
flexible and ready response to meet a shifting target.
Benchmarking - (ANSWER)Running a program on many data sets to be sure its performance falls within
required limits; timing the same algorithm on two different machines.
Code library - (ANSWER)A collection of thoroughly tested object code for various useful tasks.
Coding - (ANSWER)The process of translating the detailed designs into computer code.
Divide-and-conquer - (ANSWER)A program design strategy in which tasks are broken down into
subtasks, which are broken down into sub-subtasks, and so on, until each piece is small enough to code
comfortably. These pieces work together to accomplish the total job.
Empirical testing - (ANSWER)Designing a special set of test cases and running the program using these
test data.
Executable module - (ANSWER)The resulting object code after a linker inserts requested code from code
libraries.
External documentation - (ANSWER)Any materials assembled to clarify the program's design and
implementation.
Feasibility study - (ANSWER)A step in the software development life cycle that evaluates a proposed
project and compares the costs and benefits of various solutions.
Integrated development environment (IDE) - (ANSWER)A collection of programs that support software
development, such as debuggers, editors, toolkits, and libraries, that lets programmers perform several
tasks within the shell of a single application.
,AP COMPUTER SCIENCE PRINCIPLES VOCABULARY QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Integration testing - (ANSWER)After unit testing, integration testing is done to see that the modules
communicate the necessary data between and among themselves and that all modules work together
smoothly.
Internal documentation - (ANSWER)Documentation that is part of the program code itself.
Logic error - (ANSWER)An error in the algorithm used to solve a problem.
Object code - (ANSWER)Machine language instructions.
Pair programming - (ANSWER)Involves two programmers at a single workstation. At any given point in
time, one is writing code and the other is actively observing, watching for possible errors
but also thinking about the overall approach.
Problem specification - (ANSWER)A step in the software development life cycle that involves
developing a clear, concise, and unambiguous statement of the exact problem the software
is to solve.
Procedural language - (ANSWER)A program written in a procedural language consists of sequences of
statements that manipulate data items.
Program design phase - (ANSWER)A step in the software development life cycle that plans the structure
of the software to be written.
Program maintenance - (ANSWER)The process of adapting an existing software product due to errors,
new system requirements, or changing user needs.
Program verification - (ANSWER)Used to prove that if the input data to a program satisfies certain
conditions, then, after the program has been run on these data, the output data satisfies certain other
conditions.
, AP COMPUTER SCIENCE PRINCIPLES VOCABULARY QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Regression testing - (ANSWER)If anything is changed on an already-tested module, regression testing is
done to be sure that this change has not introduced a new error into code that was previously correct.
Runtime error - (ANSWER)An error that occurs when the program is run using certain sets of data that
result in some illegal operation, such as dividing by zero.
Semantics - (ANSWER)The meaning of correctly written programming statements.
Source code - (ANSWER)High-level language instructions.
Syntax error - (ANSWER)An error that occurs because a program statement fails to follow the correct
rules of syntax.
Technical documentation - (ANSWER)Documentation that enables programmers who later have to
modify the program to understand the code.
Third-generation language - (ANSWER)Another name for high-level programming language as
opposed to machine language (first generation) or assembly language (second generation).
Top-down decomposition - (ANSWER)A program design strategy in which tasks are broken down into
subtasks, which are broken down into sub-subtasks, and so on, until each piece is small enough to code
comfortably. These pieces work together to accomplish the total job.
Syntax - (ANSWER)The rules for exactly how programming statements must be written; the grammatical
structure of a programming language
Application - (ANSWER)(Java) A complete standalone program that resides and runs on a self-contained
computer.
Agile software development - (ANSWER)An approach to software development that emphasizes a
flexible and ready response to meet a shifting target.
Benchmarking - (ANSWER)Running a program on many data sets to be sure its performance falls within
required limits; timing the same algorithm on two different machines.
Code library - (ANSWER)A collection of thoroughly tested object code for various useful tasks.
Coding - (ANSWER)The process of translating the detailed designs into computer code.
Divide-and-conquer - (ANSWER)A program design strategy in which tasks are broken down into
subtasks, which are broken down into sub-subtasks, and so on, until each piece is small enough to code
comfortably. These pieces work together to accomplish the total job.
Empirical testing - (ANSWER)Designing a special set of test cases and running the program using these
test data.
Executable module - (ANSWER)The resulting object code after a linker inserts requested code from code
libraries.
External documentation - (ANSWER)Any materials assembled to clarify the program's design and
implementation.
Feasibility study - (ANSWER)A step in the software development life cycle that evaluates a proposed
project and compares the costs and benefits of various solutions.
Integrated development environment (IDE) - (ANSWER)A collection of programs that support software
development, such as debuggers, editors, toolkits, and libraries, that lets programmers perform several
tasks within the shell of a single application.
,AP COMPUTER SCIENCE PRINCIPLES VOCABULARY QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Integration testing - (ANSWER)After unit testing, integration testing is done to see that the modules
communicate the necessary data between and among themselves and that all modules work together
smoothly.
Internal documentation - (ANSWER)Documentation that is part of the program code itself.
Logic error - (ANSWER)An error in the algorithm used to solve a problem.
Object code - (ANSWER)Machine language instructions.
Pair programming - (ANSWER)Involves two programmers at a single workstation. At any given point in
time, one is writing code and the other is actively observing, watching for possible errors
but also thinking about the overall approach.
Problem specification - (ANSWER)A step in the software development life cycle that involves
developing a clear, concise, and unambiguous statement of the exact problem the software
is to solve.
Procedural language - (ANSWER)A program written in a procedural language consists of sequences of
statements that manipulate data items.
Program design phase - (ANSWER)A step in the software development life cycle that plans the structure
of the software to be written.
Program maintenance - (ANSWER)The process of adapting an existing software product due to errors,
new system requirements, or changing user needs.
Program verification - (ANSWER)Used to prove that if the input data to a program satisfies certain
conditions, then, after the program has been run on these data, the output data satisfies certain other
conditions.
, AP COMPUTER SCIENCE PRINCIPLES VOCABULARY QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Regression testing - (ANSWER)If anything is changed on an already-tested module, regression testing is
done to be sure that this change has not introduced a new error into code that was previously correct.
Runtime error - (ANSWER)An error that occurs when the program is run using certain sets of data that
result in some illegal operation, such as dividing by zero.
Semantics - (ANSWER)The meaning of correctly written programming statements.
Source code - (ANSWER)High-level language instructions.
Syntax error - (ANSWER)An error that occurs because a program statement fails to follow the correct
rules of syntax.
Technical documentation - (ANSWER)Documentation that enables programmers who later have to
modify the program to understand the code.
Third-generation language - (ANSWER)Another name for high-level programming language as
opposed to machine language (first generation) or assembly language (second generation).
Top-down decomposition - (ANSWER)A program design strategy in which tasks are broken down into
subtasks, which are broken down into sub-subtasks, and so on, until each piece is small enough to code
comfortably. These pieces work together to accomplish the total job.
Syntax - (ANSWER)The rules for exactly how programming statements must be written; the grammatical
structure of a programming language
Application - (ANSWER)(Java) A complete standalone program that resides and runs on a self-contained
computer.
