created: 05/15/2015; revised 02/20/25
Instructions: This is a fill-in-the-blank exercise. Each question consists of a sentence with one or two words left out. For each question, think of the word or phrase that should fill each blank, then click on the blanks to see if you are correct.
1. holds programs and data that the processor is actively working with.
2. A group of eight bits is usually called a .
3. 210, often abbreviated K, is approximately and is exactly .
220, often abbreviated M, is approximately .
230, often abbreviated G, is approximately .
4. 2M times 2N =
5. In modern computers, each byte of main memory has an which is used to locate it.
6. The processor can perform two fundamental operations on main memory: it can the bit pattern stored at an address in memory, and it can a bit pattern to an address in memory.
7. With a hard disk, bits are recorded on the surface of a spinning disk which has been coated with a material.
8. Hard disks are slow compared to main memory because they operate by a mechanical read/write head.
9. A is a collection of information that has been given a name and is stored in secondary memory.
10. Keeping the files on the hard drive organized and enabling programs to read and write them is one of the jobs of the .
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