Computer Science Basics Jeopardy

This computer component is often called the brain of the computer and carries out instructions.

What is the CPU (central processing unit)?

This type of computer memory is erased whenever the power is turned off, unlike storage on a hard drive.

What is RAM?

This input device uses a rolling ball or optical sensor and lets a user point and click on the screen.

What is a mouse?

This type of storage device has no moving parts and uses flash memory to read and write data faster than a traditional hard drive.

What is a solid-state drive (SSD)?

Invented in the late 1940s, this tiny hardware component replaced bulky vacuum tubes and let computers shrink dramatically in size.

What is the transistor?

This type of software manages a computer's hardware and lets other programs run, with Windows and macOS as common examples.

What is an operating system?

This kind of harmful software is designed to damage, disrupt, or gain unauthorized access to a computer system.

What is malware?

This type of software is distributed for free at first but asks users to pay if they keep using it after a trial period.

What is shareware?

This category of software, which includes word processors and spreadsheets, is built to let users complete a specific task on a computer.

What is application software (an app)?

This process involves finding and fixing errors in a computer program before it is released.

What is debugging?

This word describes a step-by-step set of instructions for solving a problem or completing a task.

What is an algorithm?

This process arranges a list of items into a particular order, such as from smallest to largest.

What is sorting?

This search method repeatedly splits a sorted list in half to quickly find a target value.

What is binary search?

This algorithmic technique solves a problem by having a function call itself on smaller versions of that same problem.

What is recursion?

This term describes how the time or memory an algorithm needs grows as the size of its input grows.

What is complexity?

This number system used by computers has only two possible digits, 0 and 1.

What is binary?

This is the smallest unit of data in computing, representing a single 0 or 1.

What is a bit?

This unit of data is made up of eight bits and is commonly used to measure file size.

What is a byte?

In binary, the decimal number ten is written using these four digits.

What is 1010?

Based on 16 digits that run from 0 through 9 and then A through F, this numbering system is often used to represent colors and memory addresses.

What is hexadecimal?

In programming, this term names a stored value that can change while a program runs, such as a score or a counter.

What is a variable?

This programming structure repeats a block of code multiple times, such as a for or while structure.

What is a loop?

This programming structure lets a program make a decision, running different code depending on whether a condition is true or false.

What is a conditional (an if-statement)?

This term names a named, reusable block of code that performs a specific task and can be called by other parts of a program.

What is a function?

This term describes an error in a program that causes it to behave incorrectly or crash.

What is a bug?

This co-founder of Apple, alongside Steve Wozniak, later became known for his black turtleneck and product launches.

Who is Steve Jobs?

This Microsoft co-founder became one of the world's richest people before shifting his focus to global health philanthropy.

Who is Bill Gates?

This British mathematician and codebreaker proposed a test to evaluate whether a machine can exhibit intelligent behavior indistinguishable from a human.

Who is Alan Turing?

This computer scientist and United States Navy rear admiral helped develop one of the first compilers and popularized the term debugging.

Who is Grace Hopper?

This English engineer and computer scientist invented the World Wide Web while working at CERN in 1989.

Who is Tim Berners-Lee?