Unit 2 Binary/Data Terms

  • Bits, Bytes, Hexadecimal / Nibbles:
    • Bits: the smallest unit of data in a computer, used to represent a boolean value
    • Bytes: unit of data that is typically made up of 8 bits, used to represent a single character or symbol in a computer’s memory
    • Hexadecimal: a numeral system that uses base 16, used in computing as a way to represent binary data in a more compact and human-readable form
    • Nibbles: a unit of data that is made up of 4 bits, used to represent a single hexadecimal digit
  • Binary Numbers: Unsigned Integer, Signed Integer, Floating Point:
    • Unsigned Integer: a positive whole number that can range from 0 to infinity that is determined by the number of bits used to represent the integer
    • Signed Integer: can represent both positive and negative whole numbers
    • Floating Point: a data type that represents a decimal number
  • Binary Data Abstractions: Boolean, ASCII, Unicode, RGB:
    • Boolean: a data type that has only two possible values, true or false
    • ASCII: a standardized character encoding that represents letters, numbers, and other symbols in computers; represent text in computers
    • Unicode: a standardized character encoding that represents most of the world’s written languages; includes ASCII and many other characters from different scripts and languages
    • RGB: a color model used to represent colors in devices; combination of these three colors in different proportions creates a wide range of colors
  • Data Compression: Lossy, Lossless:
    • Lossy: involves discarding some of the data in the original file in order to reduce its size; used for audio, video, and image files, where some loss of quality is acceptable in exchange for a smaller file size
    • Lossless: involves encoding the data in such a way that all of the original information can be recovered when the file is decompressed; used for text, software, and other types of data where it is important to preserve all of the original information

Unit 3… Algorithm/Programming Terms

  • Variables, Data Types, Assignment Operators:
    • Variables: used to store and manipulate data in a program
    • Data Types: classification of data based on the type of value it can hold; include integers, floating-point numbers, characters, and strings
    • Assignment Operators: a symbol that is used to assign a value to a variable (=)
  • Managing Complexity with Variables: Lists, 2D Lists, Dictionaries, Class:
    • Lists: an ordered collection of items with square brackets ([])
    • 2D Lists: also called a matrix, a list of lists
    • Dictionaries: collection of key-value pairs, uses curly braces ({})
    • Class: a blueprint for creating objects, they have member variables and have behavior associated with them
  • Algorithms, Sequence, Selection, Iteration:
    • Algorithms: a set of steps or instructions that are followed to solve a problem or perform a task
    • Sequences: executes a series of steps in a specific order
    • Selection: executes one or more steps based on a specific condition
    • Iteration: executes one or more steps repeatedly until a certain condition is met
  • Expressions, Comparison Operators, Booleans Expressions and Selection, Booleans Expressions and Iteration, Truth Tables:
    • Expressions: combination of values, variables, and operators that results in a single value
    • Comparison Operators: compare values and determine if they are equal, greater than, or less than each other
    • Boolean Expressions and Selection: a boolean variable (True/False) can be used as conditions in selection (if statements)
    • Boolean Expressions and Iteration: iteration (while loops) can use a boolean variable as a condition(if statements)
    • Truth Tables: A table for a logical operator containing each variable and all possible input and output results of that operator
  • Characters, Strings, Length, Concatenation, Upper, Lower, Traversing Strings:
    • Characters: a single letter, number, symbol, or other element
    • Strings: sequence of characters
    • Length: number of characters it contains
    • Concatenation: combining two or more strings into a single string
    • Upper: convert a string to all uppercase
    • Lower: convert a string to all lowercase
    • Traversing Strings: to access each character in the string one by one, use a for loop to do this
  • Python If, Elif, Else conditionals; Nested Selection Statements:
    • Python If: execute a block of code if a specific condition is true
    • Elif: to specify additional conditions to check if the previous conditions are false
    • Else conditionals: execute a block of code if all of the previous conditions are false
    • Nested Selection Statements: control structures that contain other control structures within them
  • Python For, While loops with Range, with List:
    • Python For: used to execute a block of code multiple times
    • While loops with Range: execute a block of code repeatedly until a certain condition is met
  • Combining loops with conditionals to Break, Continue:
    • Combining loops with conditionals to Break: break is used to exit a loop early
    • Continue: used to skip the rest of the current iteration and move on to the next one
  • Procedural Abstraction, Python Def procedures, Parameters, Return Values:
    • Procedural Abstraction: abstract away the details of how the task is performed, making your code easier to read and maintain, more efficient code
    • Python Def procedures: how procedures are made with the def word
    • Parameters: values that are passed to the procedure when it is called, defined within the parentheses of the procedure definition
    • Return Values: value that is returned can be used by the calling code to perform additional tasks or to assign to a variable