Introduction to Programming Concepts

Cards (24)

• 1
  Front

  What is a variable in programming?

  Back

  A named storage location in memory that holds a value which can be read or modified during program execution.

• 2
  Front

  What is the difference between a statically typed and a dynamically typed language regarding variables?

  Back

  In statically typed languages, variable types are declared and checked at compile time. In dynamically typed languages, types are determined and checked at runtime.

• 3
  Front

  Name the four primitive data types common to most programming languages.

  Back

  Integer (int), floating-point number (float/double), character (char), and boolean (bool/boolean).

• 4
  Front

  What is the difference between an integer and a floating-point data type?

  Back

  Integers store whole numbers without a decimal point, while floating-point types store numbers with a fractional (decimal) component.

• 5
  Front

  What is a boolean data type?

  Back

  A data type that can hold only one of two values: true or false. It is commonly used in conditional expressions.

• 6
  Front

  What is type casting (type conversion) in programming?

  Back

  The process of converting a value from one data type to another, either implicitly by the language or explicitly by the programmer.

• 7
  Front

  What is an if-else statement?

  Back

  A conditional control flow structure that executes one block of code if a condition is true and an optional alternative block if the condition is false.

• 8
  Front

  What is a switch (or match) statement used for?

  Back

  It selects one of several code blocks to execute based on the value of a single expression, serving as a cleaner alternative to multiple if-else-if chains.

• 9
  Front

  What is the key difference between a while loop and a do-while loop?

  Back

  A while loop checks its condition before executing the body, so it may run zero times. A do-while loop executes the body at least once before checking the condition.

• 10
  Front

  What is a for loop and when is it typically preferred over a while loop?

  Back

  A for loop combines initialization, condition check, and increment in one line. It is preferred when the number of iterations is known in advance.

• 11
  Front

  What do the keywords 'break' and 'continue' do inside a loop?

  Back

  'break' immediately exits the loop entirely. 'continue' skips the rest of the current iteration and jumps to the next iteration.

• 12
  Front

  What is a function (or method) in programming?

  Back

  A named, reusable block of code that performs a specific task, optionally accepts input parameters, and optionally returns a value.

• 13
  Front

  What is the difference between a function's parameter and an argument?

  Back

  A parameter is the variable defined in the function signature. An argument is the actual value passed to the function when it is called.

• 14
  Front

  What does it mean for a function to have a return value?

  Back

  The function computes a result and sends it back to the caller using a return statement, allowing the result to be used in further expressions.

• 15
  Front

  What is variable scope?

  Back

  The region of code in which a variable is accessible. A local variable is accessible only within the block or function where it is declared; a global variable is accessible throughout the program.

• 16
  Front

  What is an array?

  Back

  A fixed-size, ordered collection of elements of the same data type, stored in contiguous memory locations and accessed by a zero-based index.

• 17
  Front

  What is the time complexity of accessing an element in an array by its index?

  Back

  O(1) — constant time, because the memory address is calculated directly from the base address and the index.

• 18
  Front

  How does a list (dynamic array) differ from a static array?

  Back

  A list can grow or shrink in size at runtime, automatically resizing its underlying storage, whereas a static array has a fixed size set at declaration.

• 19
  Front

  What is recursion in programming?

  Back

  A technique where a function calls itself to solve a smaller instance of the same problem, continuing until a base case is reached.

• 20
  Front

  What are the two essential components of a recursive function?

  Back

  A base case, which stops the recursion by returning a result directly, and a recursive case, which calls the function with a smaller or simpler input.

• 21
  Front

  What happens if a recursive function has no base case?

  Back

  It results in infinite recursion, eventually causing a stack overflow error when the call stack exceeds its memory limit.

• 22
  Front

  What does Big-O notation describe?

  Back

  Big-O notation describes the upper bound of an algorithm's time or space complexity in terms of input size n, characterizing its worst-case growth rate.

• 23
  Front

  Arrange these Big-O complexities from fastest to slowest: O(n²), O(1), O(n log n), O(log n), O(n).

  Back

  O(1) < O(log n) < O(n) < O(n log n) < O(n²).

• 24
  Front

  What is O(n²) time complexity and what type of algorithm commonly produces it?

  Back

  O(n²) means the runtime grows proportionally to the square of the input size. Nested loops iterating over the same collection (e.g., bubble sort) commonly produce this complexity.