Chapter 1. Information Representation

Question 1

What are binary magnitudes and prefixes?

Answer 1

• Binary magnitudes refer to the size of binary numbers.
• Binary prefixes: kibi (Ki), mebi (Mi), gibi (Gi), tebi (Ti).
• Decimal prefixes: kilo (k), mega (M), giga (G), tera (T).

Question 2

How do you convert between different number bases?

Answer 2

• Use binary, denary, hexadecimal bases.
• Convert by grouping digits and translating based on base values.

Question 3

What is Binary Coded Decimal (BCD)?

Answer 3

• BCD represents each decimal digit separately in binary.
• Used in digital clocks and calculators.

Question 4

What is the purpose of hexadecimal in computing?

Answer 4

• Simplifies representation of binary numbers.
• Used in color codes and memory addresses.

Question 5

How does binary addition work?

Answer 5

• Add corresponding bits with carry.
• Example: 1 + 1 = 10 (carry 1).

Question 6

What is overflow in binary arithmetic?

Answer 6

• Occurs when a calculation exceeds the allocated number of bits.
• Example: Adding two large binary numbers may result in an overflow.

Question 7

What are the characteristics of bitmapped images?

Answer 7

• Composed of pixels, each with a color value.
• Quality depends on resolution and color depth.

Question 8

What affects the file size of a bitmapped image?

Answer 8

• Image resolution (pixels per inch).
• Color depth (bits per pixel).

Question 9

How is sound represented digitally?

Answer 9

• Sound is sampled at regular intervals.
• Each sample is converted to a binary value.

Question 10

What is the difference between lossy and lossless compression?

Answer 10

• Lossy: Reduces file size by removing some data (e.g., JPEG).
• Lossless: Compresses without data loss (e.g., PNG).

Question 11

What is run-length encoding (RLE)?

Answer 11

• A simple form of lossless compression.
• Encodes sequences of repeated characters or pixels.

Question 12

How are vector graphics encoded?

Answer 12

• Use geometric shapes and formulas.
• Suitable for images that require scaling.

Question 13

What are the benefits of using vector graphics?

Answer 13

• Maintain quality when resized.
• Smaller file size for simple images.

Question 14

How does changing the sampling rate affect sound quality?

Answer 14

• Higher sampling rate captures more detail.
• Increases file size.

Question 15

Explain the need for compression in multimedia.

Answer 15

• Reduces file size to save storage space and bandwidth.
• Makes file transmission faster.

Question 16

How is character data represented in computers?

Answer 16

• Using character sets like ASCII and Unicode.
• Each character has a binary representation.

Question 17

What are the uses of ASCII and Unicode?

Answer 17

• ASCII: Represents English characters.
• Unicode: Supports a wide range of characters from different languages.

Question 18

What is the difference between image resolution and screen resolution?

Answer 18

• Image resolution: Pixels in the image.
• Screen resolution: Pixels displayed on a screen.

Question 19

How does color depth affect image quality?

Answer 19

• Higher color depth means more colors and better image quality.
• Affects file size.

Question 20

Describe a practical application of hexadecimal in computing.

Answer 20

• Used in defining color codes in web design.
• Simplifies binary address representation in memory.