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Informatics 2A Semester Test Questions

This document is a semester test for the Informatics 2A module at the Academy of Computer Science & Software Engineering, scheduled for March 11, 2015. It includes instructions for answering questions, the test duration, and the total marks available. The test consists of five questions covering various topics related to databases, data models, and SQL statements.

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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
29 views3 pages

Informatics 2A Semester Test Questions

This document is a semester test for the Informatics 2A module at the Academy of Computer Science & Software Engineering, scheduled for March 11, 2015. It includes instructions for answering questions, the test duration, and the total marks available. The test consists of five questions covering various topics related to databases, data models, and SQL statements.

Uploaded by

u25476816
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

FACULTY OF SCIENCE

ACADEMY OF COMPUTER SCIENCE & SOFTWARE ENGINEERING

MODULE IFM2A10/IFM02A2
INFORMATICS 2A

CAMPUS APK

SEMESTER TEST 11 MARCH 2015

ASSESSORS MR TD MPHUTHI
MR SMA MAVEE

INTERNAL MODERATOR DR WS LEUNG

DURATION 90 minutes MARKS 75

PLEASE TAKE CAREFUL NOTE OF THE FOLLOWING:

1. Answer ALL questions in the ANSWER SHEET supplied.

2. Do NOT write in pencil. Anything in pencil WILL NOT BE MARKED.

3. Write neatly and legibly.

4. Answers must pertain to the material covered during the course of the module.

5. NO calculators may be used.

6. This question paper consists of 3 (including this cover page) pages.

7. This question paper consists of 5 question sections.

1
QUESTION 1
1.1. Briefly describe the two concepts of data and information. (2)

1.2. What is stored in a database? (2)

1.3. Briefly name and describe the two different types of multi-user databases. (4)

1.4. Briefly describe the difference between a field and a record. (2)

1.5. List the five main parts of a database system environment. (5)

[15]

QUESTION 2
2.1. Briefly describe what data models are. (2)

2.2. What are business rules? (2)

2.3. List the entities in the following business rule: “Each customer may be issued with
many quotations for potential vehicle purchases” (3)

2.4. Briefly describe four disadvantages of the Hierarchical Model. (4)

2.5. Use a diagram to illustrate the various degrees of data abstraction. (5)

[16]

QUESTION 3

3.1. List four characteristics of a relational table. (4)

3.2. Use a relational schema to describe how a table of students in a relational database
may be represented. Include any two appropriate attributes in the relational schema. (2)

3.3. Briefly describe the difference between a superkey and a candidate key. (2)

3.4. Use an ER-Diagram to illustrate how the many-to-many relationship (below) that
describes a student’s enrolment into subjects may be represented as a combination of
one-to-many relationships.

Student Subject
M N
(2)

3.5. List any four of the 12 relational database rules proposed by Dr. Codd in 1985. (4)

[14]

2
QUESTION 4

4.1. List the six phases of the Database Life Cycle (DBLC) in their correct order. (6)
4.2. Briefly distinguish between the Top-Down and Bottom-Up approaches to database
design. (2)
4.3. Name the two views of data within a system. (2)
[10]

QUESTION 5

Story Line South Africa (SLSA) is an organization in charge of monitoring all single-
author magazine article publications in the country. They are responsible for keeping
track of all author details of all articles published in South Africa’s local magazines.
They have approached you to help design part of their database. They have told you
that in their records an author can write multiple magazine articles, and each article can
only be written by a single author. The lists below show the information they would like
to store for each for each author and each article.
Author: Article:
 Name  Title
 Publisher’s name  Magazine name
 Rate per article (in Rands)  Short summary (with a maximum
of 500 characters)
 Date published

5.1. Draw an ER-Diagram to show the relationship between the necessary entities. (3)
 (Do not include the attribute list in your diagram). Use the Crow’s Foot notation
to show the relationships.
5.2. Provide the SQL statements necessary to create the necessary tables in the
Database Management System. Name the tables appropriately; select appropriate
names and data types for each attribute, and include an appropriate unique key value
for each table. Use SQL constraints to ensure all values are entered when adding new
rows. (12)

5.3. Provide an SQL statement to list all authors (name only), along with the articles (all
information) they have written. List only the authors whose articles were published after
the 14th of June 2007. (5)
[20]
— END —
3

Common questions

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A relational schema of students in a database follows principles such as entity integrity and referential integrity, with core components including tables, attributes, and keys. It defines how student data is logically organized through attributes, such as ‘student_id’ and ‘student_name.’ The schema facilitates efficient querying and manipulation by ensuring each student record is unique (using primary keys) and linked to other entities through foreign keys .

The hierarchical data model is limited by its rigid structure, which results in complex navigational queries for accessing data. It has difficulty managing many-to-many relationships and lacks flexibility in representing real-world scenarios that require dynamic data relationships. These limitations are significant in modern applications that demand more adaptability and ease of scalability in handling complex data structures .

ER-Diagrams visually represent data entities and relationships, aiding in the conceptualization of complex database structures. For instance, in a database tracking authors and magazine articles, an ER-Diagram can depict the one-to-many relationship of authors writing multiple articles. By using crows-foot notation, it clearly delineates how data flows and interconnects, providing a blueprint for database implementation and ensuring that all relational aspects are captured systematically .

Data models provide a structured framework for organizing and defining data relationships, which is essential in the database design process. By establishing clear representations of data entities, relationships, and constraints, data models ensure consistency, accuracy, and integrity within the database systems. They facilitate communication among stakeholders and form the basis for developing database schemas .

Business rules define the constraints and guidelines under which an organization operates. In the context of databases, they help in identifying the relationships between data entities and dictating how data is stored, accessed, and modified. Business rules influence entity-relationship models by shaping the structure of the database and ensuring that it aligns with organizational policies and workflows .

Codd's Twelve Rules outline the fundamental principles for relational databases, emphasizing aspects such as data integrity, logical data independence, and systematic treatment of nulls. For instance, Rule 1 (The Information Rule) states all information must be represented using tables, ensuring uniformity, while Rule 3 (Systematic Treatment of Null Values) addresses the treatment and handling of unknown values effectively. These rules ensure that databases maintain data accuracy, consistency, and are robust enough to handle various data scenarios .

The Top-Down approach begins with a conceptual model and abstracts downward to create a detailed design, emphasizing understanding high-level requirements before diving into details. It facilitates overall system coherence and integration. Conversely, the Bottom-Up approach builds up from specific details to generalized structures, allowing for flexibility and adaptability in iterative development. Each approach's advantages depend on project scope, complexity, and stakeholder requirements .

Normalization is a systematic process of organizing data in a database to reduce redundancy and improve data integrity. It involves decomposing tables to eliminate data anomalies like update, insert, and delete anomalies. This process ensures that changes made in the database do not result in inconsistencies among data entries, enhances scalability, and optimizes the database for performance .

To ensure all necessary data values are present when inserting new rows, SQL constraints such as NOT NULL, UNIQUE, and CHECK can be employed. The NOT NULL constraint prevents insertion of records with empty fields, ensuring completeness of essential data. UNIQUE ensures no duplicate values in a column, enhancing data integrity. CHECK constraints validate data against a set range or value constraints, ensuring logical correctness in entries .

Data refers to raw, unprocessed facts that have no meaning on their own, whereas information is processed data that is meaningful and useful for decision-making. This distinction is crucial in database management because it helps in ensuring that databases store data that can be effectively transformed into information to support business operations and decision-making processes .

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