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IB Computer Science “Questionbank” – Paper 1

I am sure that you are aware by now that IB Computer Science does not have its own
Questionbank or Exam-Mate section or anything of the like. Sure, not a lot of people
take CS, but I guess it still sucks that we do not have any resource that compiles past
paper questions and divides them by topic. Never fear, for I have created this resource
to help you (and myself) answer past paper questions by topic. These questions are
taken straight out of the HL papers from May 2014 onwards, which is when the current
syllabus was released.

Please note that this document only contains the shorter questions (Section A). All
questions are sorted by topic, and within each topic the questions are listed in
chronological order starting from May 2014. You may notice that some questions are
very similar or even exactly the same – this is intentional! I kept the duplicates to
emphasize that there are some common questions that the IB has repeated in CS
exams, which is definitely to your benefit. You will find the markschemes on the other
document in the zip file.

Topic 1

1. Identify two features that need to be considered when planning a new

computing system for an organization. (2)

2. Explain what is meant by beta testing. (2)

3. Describe one advantage and one disadvantage of using observations to

gather information when planning a new system. (4)

4. Outline one usability issue associated with the design of mobile devices. (2)

5. Outline two characteristics of spreadsheets. (2)

6. Describe one way that software developers can ensure that the users are aware
of any available updates for their products. (2)

7. Human interaction with the computer system includes a range of usability

problems.
(a) Define the term usability. (1)
(b) Identify two methods that could be used to improve the accessibility of a
computer system. (2)

8. Outline one problem of maintaining legacy systems. (2)

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9. Outline the use of a failover system. (2)

10.State three potential usability issues with cell phones. (3)

11.Describe the use of beta testing. (2)

12.Identify two causes of data loss. (2)

13.Identify two reasons for releasing a software update. (2)

14.Identify one method of inputting data that can improve the accessibility of a
computer system for some users. (1)

15.Outline what is meant by beta testing. (2)

16.A new computerized system is being planned for a school library.

(a) Describe one method by which systems requirements can be obtained
from the stakeholders. (2)
(b) Outline one reason for providing a prototype for this new system. (2)

17.Direct observation is a technique used by a system analyst to determine

user requirements for updating a computer system.
(a) Identify one advantage of direct observation. (1)
(b) Identify one disadvantage of direct observation. (1)

Topic 2

1. Distinguish between the use of two types of primary memory. (2)

2. Outline how a color can be represented in a computer. (2)

3. Outline the function of the ALU. (1)

4. Outline the relationship between binary and hexadecimal. (2)

5. Construct the truth table for the following Boolean expression: X = not A and B
or A and not B (4)

6. Construct a truth table for the following Boolean expression: (A or B) and (not C
or B) (4)

7. Construct a truth table for the following Boolean expression: (A and B) nor C (3)
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8. Describe the function of the control unit (CU) in the central processing unit
(CPU). (2)

9. Construct the truth table for the following expression: A xor (B or C) (3)

10.In an 8-bit register, state the binary representation of the hexadecimal number
3B. (2)

11.(a) State the purpose of cache memory. (1)

(b) Draw a diagram to show the relationship between random access
memory (RAM), the processor, and cache memory. (1)

12.Construct a truth table for the Boolean expression not (A xor B) and C. (4)

13.Explain why cache memory can speed up the processing within a computer. (2)

14.One of the functions of an operating system is memory management. Describe

how this function prevents the system from crashing when more than one
program is run at the same time. (2)

15.Copy and complete the following truth table. (3)

16.Construct a logic diagram for the Boolean expression: not A or B and C. (3)

17.The machine instruction cycle is the process by which a program instruction is

fetched, decoded, executed and the results are stored.
(a) State where all instructions and data are stored. (1)
(b) Outline the role of the data bus and address bus in this process. (2)

18.Define the term bit. (1)

19.Outline the role of the memory data register in the machine execution cycle. (2)

20.Calculate how many different colors can be represented using two

hexadecimal characters. (2)

21. Explain the importance of the memory management function of an operating system.
(3)
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22.Construct a logic diagram for the following Boolean expression: not A or (A and
B) (3)

Topic 3

1. Identify two key features of a peer-to-peer (P2P) network. (2)

2. Outline one example of the use of a virtual private network (VPN). (3)

3. By making direct reference to the technologies used, explain how a virtual private
network (VPN) allows a traveling salesperson to connect securely to their
company’s network. (4)

4. A school uses a local area network (LAN) which connects several computers
and a printer to a server and allows access to the internet.
(a) Define the term server. (1)
(b) Identify the different clients in this network. (1)
(c) (i) Identify one threat to the security of the school’s computer system. (1)
(ii) State one way to protect the computer system from the threat identified
in part (c)(i). (1)

5. Explain, in terms of resources, how Voice over IP provides a collaborative

working environment for a company with multiple locations nationwide. (3)

6. Outline one advantage and one disadvantage of wireless networks. (4)

7. Many different people and organizations upload scientific materials to the

internet. A student uses data from the internet in a science project. Outline two
ethical issues concerning this use of the internet. (4)

8. Explain how the use of media access control (MAC) addresses can
improve security. (3)

9. In the context of a networked world, state the role of

(a) a client. (1)
(b) a server. (1)

10.(a) Outline what is meant by the term computer network. (2)

(b) Describe a problem resulting from low bandwidth in a computer network. (2)
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Topic 4

1. State three advantages of using sub-programs in solving programming problems.

(3)

2. Consider the following algorithm.

Trace the algorithm and show the outputs that will be produced. (3)

3. Trace the following algorithm for N = 6. Show all working in a trace table. (4)
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4. Use a selection sort to put the following set of numbers into order from highest to
lowest. List the results after each pass. 12 52 16 42 88 86 (3)

5. A sub-program all_even() accepts a positive integer N and outputs true if all

digits of N are even, otherwise it outputs false. For example, all_even(246)
outputs true and all_even(256) outputs false. The following algorithm is
constructed for the sub-program all_even(N).

(a) Explain why this algorithm does not obtain the correct result. (2)
(b) Outline what should be changed in the algorithm to obtain the correct result.
(3)

6. The following list of numbers needs to be put into ascending order.

9,11,3,4,5,7,1,2
State the list that would be obtained after two iterations of a bubble sort. (1)

7. Consider the following algorithm.

Determine the outputs that will be produced by this algorithm. (3)

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Topic 5

1. Consider the following linked list which is maintained in alphabetical

order. Jean – 9, Mario – 7, Phoebe – 2, Roman – 6, Samira – 8.
With the aid of diagrams, explain how the node Joanna – 16 would be inserted
into the linked list. (3)

2. (a) Describe the characteristics of a stack. (2)

(b) Identify two applications of a stack in computing. (2)

3. Consider the following binary tree.

(a) State the order that the nodes will be listed using the postorder tree traversal.
(1)
(b) The node H is deleted so that the postorder traversal of the remaining
nodes is preserved from part (a). Sketch the updated binary tree
following this deletion. (2)

4. (a) Draw an annotated diagram showing how an array can be used to store
a stack. (2)
(b) Explain how elements in the stack may be reversed using a queue. (4)

5. Consider the following recursive algorithm FUN(X, N), where X and N are two
integers.
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(a) Determine how many times multiplication is performed when this

algorithm is executed. (1)
(b) Determine the value of FUN(2,3), showing all of your working. (3)
(c) State the purpose of this recursive algorithm. (1)

6. Consider the following binary tree.

(a)Identify all leaf nodes in this binary tree. (1)

(b) For this binary tree, state the result of:
(i) in-order tree traversal, (1)
(ii) postorder tree traversal. (1)

7. Identify the components of a node in a doubly linked list. (3)

8. Outline the reason why recursive solutions can be memory intensive. (2)

9. Consider the following recursive method, where N is a positive integer.

(a)Determine the output produced by the method call mystery(5). (1)

(b) Determine the output produced by the method call mystery(4). (3)
(c) Construct an iterative algorithm for the method mystery(), which uses a
single while loop instead of recursion. (4)

10.Describe the characteristics of a queue. (2)

11.Compare the use of a linked list with an array to store and process the daily
sales in a business. (3)

Topic 6
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1. Outline the role of paging in the management of primary memory. (2)

2. Define polling. (2)

3. (a) Define the term protocol. (1)

(b) Outline why protocols are necessary. (2)

4. Explain functions that an operating system needs to perform in relation to

multitasking.
(4)

5. Outline the function of an interrupt. (2)

Topic 7

1. Outline two distinct features of autonomous agents. (4)

2. Describe how a GPS system can identify the position of a person. (3)

3. Discuss one ethical consideration of using CCTV in a workplace. (3)

4. Identify two features of an autonomous agent acting within a larger system. (2)