Comsci 1 New
Comsci 1 New
Comsci 1 New
* 5 0 1 5 4 0 7 3 5 7 *
1 hour 45 minutes
INSTRUCTIONS
● Answer all questions.
● Use a black or dark blue pen. You may use an HB pencil for any diagrams or graphs.
● Write your name, centre number and candidate number in the boxes at the top of the page.
● Write your answer to each question in the space provided.
● Do not use an erasable pen or correction fluid.
● Do not write on any bar codes.
● Calculators must not be used in this paper.
INFORMATION
● The total mark for this paper is 75.
● The number of marks for each question or part question is shown in brackets [ ].
● No marks will be awarded for using brand names of software packages or hardware.
DC (DE) 327909/3
© UCLES 2024 [Turn over
2
(a) Tick (✓) one box to show the reason why computers use binary to represent data.
B Computers are made of switches and gates that can only be on or off.
C Binary does not need to be converted into other forms of data to be displayed.
The American standard code for information interchange (ASCII) denary number for the
character ‘N’ is 78.
(i) Tick (✓) one box to identify the ASCII denary number for the character ‘Q’.
A 81
B 80
C 79
D 77
[1]
(ii) Give the binary number for the ASCII denary number for ‘N’.
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Working space
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(iii) Explain how the word ‘RED’ is represented using a character set.
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© UCLES 2024 0478/12/F/M/24
3
(i) Explain why recording sound with a higher sampling resolution creates a more accurate
recording.
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(ii) Give one other way that the accuracy of a sound recording can be improved.
Increase the sample rate
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(a) The table contains five statements about the role of registers in the fetch–decode–execute
cycle of a CPU.
Letter Statement
A PC stores the address of the next instruction to be accessed
B MAR stores the instructions of the program that is running
C MDR stores the data passed to it from the PC
D ACC stores the result of each calculation
E CIR stores the instruction currently being executed
B
Incorrect statement 1 .........................................
Be processed
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C
Incorrect statement 2 .........................................
MDR stores the data passed to it from the accumulator
Corrected statement .................................................................................................................
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[4]
(b) The computer has a single core 3.5 GHz processor and an 8 kB cache.
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More frequently used data and instructions can be stored in the cache,
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Therefore increasing the CPU performance.
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(ii) Read only memory (ROM) is another example of primary storage. ROM often stores the
start-up instructions for a computer.
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(a) Complete the table by writing each missing OS function name and description.
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managing memory
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Operating system
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allows application software to run on the computer
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managing peripherals
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[3]
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(ii) Identify one input device and one example of an interrupt that it can generate.
Mouse
Input device .......................................................................................................................
Clicking on a GUI icon causes a task to load
Interrupt .............................................................................................................................
[1]
Explain how the processor manages the current program and the interrupt.
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4 A student enters a uniform resource locator (URL) into their web browser.
Draw and annotate a diagram to show the process from the user entering the URL to the web
browser displaying the web page.
If the IP is Webserver
Not found Sends data
The browser In DNS back
Renders the Server(1),
HTML code and server(2)
Displays them on Is used to
The computer Lookup IP
Address
DNS
Server(2) [5]
transaction-chains virtually
Physically
A digital currency does not exist ........................................................... , it can only be accessed
electronically.
Blockchains
Some digital currencies have digital ledgers called ........................................................... .
These are decentralised databases where each transaction is stored as a new set of data with
Time-stamp
a ........................................................... and is linked to the previous set of data. This means that
transactions cannot be altered, only new transactions added, which allows the location of the data
Traced
to be ........................................................... .
[4]
6 A self-driving tractor sows seeds and harvests crops for a farmer. The self-driving tractor moves
automatically through the field, turning at each end and stopping when it has finished.
(a) One reason the self-driving tractor is a robot is because it has a mechanical structure that
includes wheels, an engine, and a framework.
Give one other reason why the self-driving tractor is an example of a robot.
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(b) If a person is detected within 3 metres whilst the tractor is moving, the self-driving tractor
must stop.
(i) Explain how an infra-red sensor, microprocessor and actuator can be used to stop the
self-driving tractor if a person is detected within 3 metres.
The sensor constantly captures distance
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data from the surrounding. The analogue
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Data is converted into digitalized data by the use of ADC, and is sent
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To the microprocessor. The microprocessor compares this distance
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With the stored value of 3 meters. If the value is greater than 3 meters,
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No actions are taken. If the value is less or equal to 3 meters, the
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Microprocessor sends a digital signal to the actuator to stop the tractor.
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The signal is converted to analogue via the use of DAC.
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The whole process is continuous and it repeats until it is stopped.
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(ii) Identify one other sensor that the self-driving tractor might use and how it will use the
sensor.
Proximity sensor
Sensor ...............................................................................................................................
To make sure that it’s near the crops
Use ....................................................................................................................................
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[2]
(c) Explain the drawbacks of a farmer using a self-driving tractor to sow seeds and harvest crops.
Self-driving tractor maybe expensive to purchase in the first place.
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Its sensors may break, and it may skip crops and skip location to sow seeds.
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Self-driving tractor may not be suitable for non-standard tasks. If the seeds
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Have spilled, or the crops are dropped on the way, it may not know how to
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Pick them up.
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(d) The self-driving tractor has an in-built expert system that the farmer can use to solve any
errors with the tractor.
(e) At the end of each day the self-driving tractor transmits the data it has collected to the farmer’s
computer in their house.
(i) Describe the role of the self-driving tractor and the farmer’s computer in the echo check.
The tractor sends the data to the computer. The receiving computer
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Sends the data back to the tractor. The microprocessor inside the tractor
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Checks if the first set of data and the second set of data matches.
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If they match, no error has occurred during transmission. If they do not
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Match, an error has occurred during transmission and data needs to be
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Re-sent.
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The table shows 7 bytes that are transmitted using odd parity. The parity bit has been
completed for each byte.
parity
bit 7 bit 6 bit 5 bit 4 bit 3 bit 2 bit 1
bit
byte 1 1 1 0 0 1 1 1 0
byte 2 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0
byte 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
byte 4 0 1 0 0 1 1 1 1
byte 5 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
byte 6 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
byte 7 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 1
parity 1 0 0 0
byte 1 0 1 0
[3]
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Working space
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(ii) Give one benefit of using hexadecimal instead of binary to represent data.
It is easier to debug
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(b) Two’s complement can be used to represent positive and negative binary integers.
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(ii) Convert the denary number 45 into an 8-bit two’s complement integer.
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Working space
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State the mathematical effect of a right shift of four places on a positive binary integer.
The least significant bits are lost. The value is divided by 16, so it
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Becomes less.
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