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Question 2

What is the primary goal of Requirements Engineering (RE)?

Answer 2

To use methods and tools to help people specify the qualities and functions of the ‘right’ system to build.

Question 3

Why is Requirements Engineering (RE) considered a hard discipline?

Answer 3

Because it is a mix of technical and social challenges, often with no single right answer.

Question 4

According to Sommerville, what is the key difference between requirements and design?

Answer 4

Requirements describe what the system should do, whereas design describes how the system will do it.

Question 5

What is the distinction between a ‘user’ and a ‘stakeholder’ in Requirements Engineering?

Answer 5

A user directly interacts with the system, while a stakeholder is anyone positively or negatively affected by it, which includes users.

Question 6

A non-functional requirement (NFR) is best thought of as a system _____.

Answer 6

quality

Question 7

What are ‘Domain Properties’ or ‘Assumptions’ in the context of requirements?

Answer 7

Characteristics of the problem domain that are assumed to hold true but do not have to be achieved by the system itself.

Question 8

What term describes global issues, often from business or legal sources, that shape a system’s requirements, such as a project deadline?

Answer 8

Constraints.

Question 9

What is the ‘say-do’ problem, also known as tacit knowledge, in requirements elicitation?

Answer 9

People find it difficult to describe knowledge they regularly use, leading to discrepancies between what they say and what they do.

Question 10

What is a significant drawback of using documentation for requirements elicitation?

Answer 10

The documentation may be out of date or reflect an ideal version of reality rather than the actual process.

Question 11

In requirements elicitation, what is the main advantage of interviews over surveys?

Answer 11

Interviews provide a rich source of data and allow for probing and asking follow-up questions.

Question 12

What is a major disadvantage of using surveys or questionnaires for requirements elicitation?

Answer 12

There is no opportunity to clarify misunderstood questions or to ask follow-up questions.

Question 13

What phenomenon in group elicitation techniques describes when people tend to follow the group consensus rather than offering divergent ideas?

Answer 13

Groupthink.

Question 14

What is a key benefit of using observation as an elicitation technique?

Answer 14

It allows the observer to see how things are really done, revealing details people might not otherwise mention.

Question 15

What is the standard format for writing a user story description?

Answer 15

As a <type>, I want <some> so that <some>.</some></some></type>

Question 16

What are ‘Conditions of Satisfaction’ in the context of a user story?

Answer 16

They are high-level acceptance tests that will be true after the user story is complete.

Question 17

In the INVEST acronym for user story quality, what does the ‘N’ stand for?

Answer 17

Negotiable, meaning details are not fixed contracts and can be discussed between the customer and development team.

Question 18

What is the primary purpose of a requirements context diagram?

Answer 18

To define the scope of a system by showing its boundaries, the external entities (actors) it interacts with, and the data flowing between them.

Question 19

In a requirements context diagram, relationships between the system and actors must represent _____ and not actions.

Answer 19

data or information

Question 20

What is the difference between requirements validation and verification?

Answer 20

Validation asks ‘Are we building the right system?’, while verification asks ‘Are we building the system right?’.

Question 21

What is a major advantage of using paper prototypes for requirements validation?

Answer 21

They are fast to create, inexpensive, and make concepts concrete for stakeholders.

Question 22

What is the purpose of requirements traceability?

Answer 22

To track where each requirement came from and to trace how requirements are satisfied by design, code, and test elements.

Question 23

A _____ system is a computer system with software that is embedded in system hardware, often in read-only memory.

Answer 23

embedded

Question 24

What is a key characteristic of a real-time system?

Answer 24

Its correct functioning depends not only on the results produced but also the time at which these results are produced.

Question 25

Distinguish between a 'hard' and a 'soft' real-time system.

Answer 25

A hard real-time system's operation is incorrect if timing is missed, while a soft real-time system's operation is only degraded.

Question 26

In a reactive system, stimuli that occur at predictable time intervals are known as _____ stimuli.

Answer 26

periodic

Question 27

What are the three main software elements of an embedded system's architecture?

Answer 27

Sensor control processes, a data processor, and actuator control processes.

Question 28

In the 'producer/consumer' process coordination pattern, what is the purpose of a shared buffer?

Answer 28

It allows producer and consumer processes to run at different speeds while ensuring mutual exclusion to shared data.

Question 29

Which architectural pattern for embedded systems is used when data must be transformed through a sequence of processes before it can be used?

Answer 29

Process Pipeline.

Question 30

The _____ pattern is an architectural pattern used in embedded systems to monitor sensors and update displays or trigger actions based on detected changes.

Answer 30

Observe and React

Question 31

What is the goal of a timing analysis in a real-time system?

Answer 31

To calculate how often each process must execute to ensure all deadlines are met.

Question 32

What is Software Engineering?

Answer 32

An engineering discipline concerned with all aspects of software production, from initial conception to operation and maintenance.

Question 33

According to studies like one from IBM, when is the relative cost of fixing a software defect the highest?

Answer 33

During the deployment or maintenance phase of the development cycle.

Question 34

What software bug caused the Therac-25 radiation therapy machine to deliver massive overdoses of radiation?

Answer 34

Concurrent programming errors, also known as race conditions.

Question 35

The failure of the Ariane 5 rocket flight V88 was due to an integer overflow error in dead code intended for which previous rocket model?

Answer 35

Ariane 4.

Question 36

Name two of the four key qualities of 'good software'.

Answer 36

Acceptability, Dependability & Security, Efficiency, and Maintainability.

Question 37

What is a primary problem with the traditional Waterfall model of software development?

Answer 37

Its inflexibility makes it difficult to respond to changes in requirements once a phase is complete.

Question 38

What is a key benefit of the incremental development model?

Answer 38

It allows for faster feedback and more rapid delivery of useful functionality to the customer.

Question 39

What does a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) do in project management?

Answer 39

It provides a deliverable-oriented breakdown of a project into smaller, more manageable components.

Question 40

According to Brook's Law, what is the effect of adding more people to a late software project?

Answer 40

It delays the project even further due to increased communication and coordination overhead.

Question 41

What are the four main stages of risk management in a project?

Answer 41

Risk identification, risk analysis, risk planning, and risk monitoring.

Question 42

The EU's Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) is a legal framework that describes cybersecurity requirements for what types of products?

Answer 42

Hardware and software products with digital elements placed on the market of the European Union.

Question 43

What is the term for the safeguarding of people, society, organisations, and nations from cyber risks?

Answer 43

Cybersecurity.

Question 44

What are the three core principles of the CIA triad in information security?

Answer 44

Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability.

Question 45

In the CIA triad, which principle ensures that information is not disclosed to unauthorised individuals, entities, or processes?

Answer 45

Confidentiality.

Question 46

The principle of _____ in the CIA triad is the property of accuracy and completeness of information.

Answer 46

Integrity

Question 47

Which principle of the CIA triad describes the property of a system being accessible and usable on demand by an authorised entity?

Answer 47

Availability.

Question 48

What security property ensures that the sender, receiver, and content of a transmitted file can be established, preventing denial of the transaction?

Answer 48

Non-repudiation.

Question 49

What is a key trade-off when implementing multi-factor authentication (MFA) to improve confidentiality?

Answer 49

It can potentially hinder availability if users lose access to their authentication method.

Question 50

A _____ is a weakness in a system, while a _____ is a potential event that could exploit that weakness.

Answer 50

vulnerability, threat

Question 51

What is an attack vector in the context of cybersecurity?

Answer 51

The path or means by which an attacker can gain access to a computer or network server to deliver a payload or malicious outcome.

Question 52

The Stuxnet worm specifically targeted which type of industrial control system component?

Answer 52

Programmable logic controllers (PLCs).

Question 53

What is the goal of the 'exposure limitation and recovery' strategy in secure software design?

Answer 53

To design the system so that the adverse consequences of a successful attack are minimised.

Question 54

The _____ cube is a model for classifying attack vectors along three dimensions: the state of the asset, the type of assurance, and the type of vulnerability.

Answer 54

McCumber

Question 55

STRIDE Threat: Spoofing

Answer 55

This threat involves an attacker illicitly assuming the identity of another entity, such as mimicking a login screen to capture credentials.

Question 56

STRIDE Threat: Tampering

Answer 56

This threat involves the malicious modification of data, such as using a virus to alter the logic of a host program.

Question 57

STRIDE Threat: Repudiation

Answer 57

This threat involves a user denying having performed an action, which is often countered by mechanisms like secure logging (e.g., changing log files to hide actions).

Question 58

STRIDE Threat: Information Disclosure

Answer 58

This threat involves exposing information to individuals who are not authorised to see it, such as viewing confidential data transmitted in plaintext.

Question 59

STRIDE Threat: Denial-of-Service

Answer 59

This threat aims to make a system or network resource unavailable to its intended users, for instance, by overwhelming it with traffic.

Question 60

In the user story quality acronym INVEST, what does the 'I' represent?

Answer 60

Independent, meaning user stories should not depend on each other as much as possible.

Question 61

What type of interview for requirements elicitation uses a strict, predefined set of questions?

Answer 61

A structured interview.

Question 62

Which software development life cycle model is described as a 'plan-driven model' with separate and distinct phases of specification and development?

Answer 62

The Waterfall model.

Question 63

What is the term for the formal document that acts as a collection of requirements, often serving as a contract between analysts and developers?

Answer 63

Software Requirements Specification (SRS).

Question 64

What type of requirements modelling, commonly used in UX, illustrates user needs, emotions, and interactions with an organisation over a specific timeline?

Answer 64

Customer Journey Map.

Question 65

What is the key difference between an elicitation walkthrough and an inspection?

Answer 65

A walkthrough is typically an informal developer technique to find defects, while an inspection is a formal process management tool to improve the development process itself.

Question 66

What term refers to the path an attacker follows to reach an asset, which may involve exploiting one or more vulnerabilities?

Answer 66

Attack vector.

Question 67

In real-time systems, stimuli that occur at unpredictable times, such as a power failure, are known as _____ stimuli.

Answer 67

aperiodic

Question 68

What is the main function of the 'scheduler' component in a Real-Time Operating System (RTOS)?

Answer 68

It chooses the next process to be run based on scheduling information and timing constraints.

Question 69

Which architectural pattern is suitable for a system that includes sensors providing information about the environment and actuators that can change it?

Answer 69

Environmental Control.