Important Questions and Answers for Computer Science Syllabus 2024-2025

1. Programming and Software Development

- What is the difference between procedural and object-oriented programming?

- Procedural programming focuses on functions and procedures, while object-oriented

programming (OOP) organizes code into classes and objects, supporting inheritance,

polymorphism, encapsulation, and abstraction.

- Explain the concept of recursion with an example.

- Recursion is a process in which a function calls itself to solve a problem. For example, a factorial

function is recursive because it calls itself with a decremented value until it reaches a base case.

- What are the advantages and disadvantages of using pointers in C/C++?

- Advantages: Efficient memory usage, direct memory access, and manipulation.

- Disadvantages: Complex and prone to errors like memory leaks and pointer arithmetic errors.

2. Data Structures

- What is a stack? Explain its operations.

- A stack is a linear data structure that follows the Last In First Out (LIFO) principle. Operations

include push (add an item), pop (remove the top item), and peek (view the top item without removing

it).

- What is the difference between a linked list and an array?

- Array: Fixed size, contiguous memory allocation, fast access to elements by index.

- Linked List: Dynamic size, elements stored non-contiguously, slower access due to traversal.
- Explain the various types of trees in computer science.

- Binary Tree: Each node has at most two children.

- Binary Search Tree (BST): A binary tree where left children are smaller than the parent node, and

right children are greater.

- AVL Tree: A self-balancing binary search tree.

3. Algorithms

- What is the time complexity of bubble sort?

- Bubble sort has a time complexity of O(n^2) in the worst and average cases, and O(n) in the best

case when the list is already sorted.

- Explain the Dijkstra algorithm.

- Dijkstra's algorithm is used to find the shortest path from a source node to all other nodes in a

weighted graph. It uses a greedy approach and a priority queue to select the node with the smallest

tentative distance.

- What is the difference between depth-first search (DFS) and breadth-first search (BFS)?

- DFS explores as far as possible along each branch before backtracking.

- BFS explores all neighbors at the present depth before moving on to nodes at the next depth

level.

4. Databases

- What is normalization in databases?

- Normalization is the process of organizing the attributes and tables of a database to minimize

redundancy and dependency. The stages of normalization are 1NF, 2NF, 3NF, and BCNF.

- Explain the difference between SQL and NoSQL databases.

 - SQL Databases: Structured, relational, use tables to store data (e.g., MySQL, PostgreSQL).

- NoSQL Databases: Non-relational, flexible schema, suitable for large volumes of unstructured

data (e.g., MongoDB, Cassandra).

- What is an index in a database?

- An index is a data structure that improves the speed of data retrieval operations on a database

table, at the cost of additional space and slower write operations.

5. Operating Systems

- What are the different types of operating system structures?

- Monolithic: A single large process where all services run in kernel space (e.g., Linux).

- Microkernel: Small kernel that handles only essential functions, with other services running in

user space (e.g., Minix, QNX).

- What is the purpose of virtual memory?

- Virtual memory allows the system to use more memory than physically available by swapping

data between RAM and disk storage.

- Explain process scheduling in an operating system.

- Process scheduling is the method by which the operating system decides the order in which

processes are executed. Common scheduling algorithms include First-Come-First-Serve (FCFS),

Shortest Job Next (SJN), and Round-Robin.

6. Computer Networks

- What is the OSI model?

- The OSI model is a conceptual framework used to understand network interactions. It has seven

layers: Physical, Data Link, Network, Transport, Session, Presentation, and Application.
- What is TCP/IP? How is it different from the OSI model?

- TCP/IP is a set of protocols used for communication over the internet. It has four layers: Link,

Internet, Transport, and Application. It is more simplified compared to the OSI model.

- What is a subnet mask?

- A subnet mask is used in networking to divide an IP address into two parts: the network address

and the host address. It helps determine if two hosts are on the same network.

7. Software Engineering

- What are the stages of the software development lifecycle (SDLC)?

- The SDLC includes stages like requirement gathering, system design, coding, testing,

deployment, and maintenance.

- What is Agile methodology?

- Agile is an iterative and incremental approach to software development where projects are

divided into smaller parts, allowing teams to develop, test, and deploy features quickly and

continuously.

- What is the difference between functional and non-functional requirements?

- Functional Requirements describe what the system should do (e.g., login functionality), while

Non-Functional Requirements describe how the system performs (e.g., security, performance).

8. Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

- What is the difference between supervised and unsupervised learning?

- Supervised Learning uses labeled data to train models, while Unsupervised Learning finds hidden

patterns or intrinsic structures in data without labeled outcomes.

- What is a neural network?

- A neural network is a computational model inspired by the human brain, consisting of layers of

nodes (neurons) that process inputs and learn from data to make predictions.

- Explain the concept of overfitting in machine learning.

- Overfitting occurs when a machine learning model learns the noise in the training data instead of

the actual pattern, leading to poor generalization on new data.

9. Cybersecurity

- What is encryption?

- Encryption is the process of converting data into a secure format so that it cannot be read by

unauthorized parties.

- What is a firewall?

- A firewall is a security system that monitors and controls incoming and outgoing network traffic

based on predetermined security rules.

- Explain the concept of phishing.

- Phishing is a type of cyber attack where attackers impersonate legitimate organizations to steal

sensitive information, such as login credentials and credit card details.