Computers and Microprocessors Quiz – Set 3
Attempt each question, then click “Show answer” to reveal the correct option and a brief explanation.
1. Which of the following best explains “clock cycle” in a microprocessor?
Correct answer: B. The smallest time unit for synchronized operations — Instructions are broken into steps that align with clock cycles.
2. “Moore’s Law” originally stated that:
Correct answer: B. Transistor count doubles — This empirical observation drove expectations of exponential growth in computing power.
3. In binary representation, what is the decimal value of the 8-bit number 00010110₂?
Correct answer: C. 22 — 16 + 4 + 2 = 22.
4. In a typical microprocessor, which flag is set when the result of an arithmetic operation is zero?
Correct answer: B. Zero flag — It indicates that the result is zero and is used for conditional branching.
5. Which of the following is true about “C language” in relation to systems and microprocessor programming?
Correct answer: C. High-level but close to hardware — C is widely used for OS, compilers, and embedded systems.
6. In computer storage hierarchy, which is typically the fastest but smallest?
Correct answer: C. Cache memory — It is closest to the CPU and much faster than RAM or disk.
7. Which one of the following is an example of secondary storage?
Correct answer: D. SSD — Secondary storage is non-volatile and used for long-term data storage.
8. Which of these best describes “firmware”?
Correct answer: C. Software in ROM/flash — Firmware controls basic hardware functions (e.g., BIOS/UEFI).
9. Which type of memory is primarily used for buffering and spooling in printers and other I/O devices?
Correct answer: C. RAM/buffer memory — Buffers smooth out differences in speed between CPU and I/O devices.
10. Which of the following ports is most commonly used to connect external storage devices like pen drives?
Correct answer: C. USB — Universal Serial Bus is a standard interface for many peripherals.
11. The main purpose of an “operating system scheduler” is to:
Correct answer: B. Decide CPU allocation — Scheduling algorithms determine process execution order.
12. In microprocessor terminology, “throughput” refers to:
Correct answer: B. Instructions completed per unit time — Higher throughput means more work done in the same time.
13. “Latency” in memory systems is best described as:
Correct answer: B. Time delay before data transfer — Lower latency is desirable for faster response.
14. In microprocessor instructions, “immediate addressing mode” means:
Correct answer: B. Operand inside the instruction — The value is given directly rather than by address.
15. Which OS concept allows multiple processes to share the CPU by rapidly switching between them?
Correct answer: B. Time-sharing — The CPU switches rapidly among processes, giving the illusion of parallelism.
16. “Bus width” of a data bus primarily determines:
Correct answer: B. Bits transferred in parallel — A 32-bit data bus can move 32 bits per transfer.
17. Which one of the following statements about “multithreading” is correct?
Correct answer: B. Different parts of one process — Threads share the same memory space but can run in parallel or quasi-parallel.
18. “ASCII” is primarily used for:
Correct answer: B. Character encoding — ASCII assigns numeric values to characters.
19. Which networking protocol is most commonly used for communication over the internet?
Correct answer: B. HTTP/HTTPS — These are the primary application-layer protocols for web communication.
20. In a modern microprocessor, which component is primarily responsible for predicting the next instruction to pre-fetch and improve performance?
Correct answer: B. Branch predictor — It guesses the outcome of conditional branches to keep the pipeline full.
