A-LevelComputer ScienceHardware9618/12 · May/June 2021 · Q517 Marks

Seth uses a computer for work.

(a)Complete the following descriptions of internal components of a computer by writing the missing terms. The __________ transmits the signals to coordinate events based on the electronic pulses of the __________ . The __________ carries data to the components, while the __________ carries the address where data needs to be written to or read from. The __________ performs mathematical operations and logical comparisons.[5]
(b)Describe the ways in which the following factors can affect the performance of his laptop computer. Number of cores Clock speed[4]
(c)(i)Give two benefits of storing data using cloud computing.[2]
(c)(ii)Give two drawbacks of Seth using cloud computing.[2]
(d)Draw one line from each term to its most appropriate description. Term Public IP address Private IP address Dynamic IP address Static IP address Description It is only visible to devices within the Local Area Network (LAN) It increments by 1 each time the device connects to the internet A new one is reallocated each time a device connects to the internet It can only be allocated to a router It is visible to any device on the internet It does not change each time a device connects to the internet[4]

Mark scheme

Marking points from the official mark scheme (May/June 2021). The mark or mark type is shown in brackets.

[1] (a) (First blank) control unit / bus
[1] (a) (Second blank) (system) clock
[1] (a) (Third blank) data bus
[1] (a) (Fourth blank) address bus
[1] (a) (Fifth blank) arithmetic logic unit / ALU
[1] (b) (Number of cores) Each core processes one instruction per clock pulse
[1] (b) (Number of cores) More/multiple cores mean that sequences of instructions can be split between them // more than one instruction is executed per clock pulse // more sequences of instructions can be run at the same time
[1] (b) (Number of cores) More cores decreases the time taken to complete task
[1] (b) (Clock speed) Each instruction is executed on a clock pulse // one F-E cycle is run on each clock pulse
[1] (b) (Clock speed) The clock speed dictates the number of instructions that can be run per second
[1] (b) (Clock speed) The faster the clock speed the more instructions can be run per second
[1] (c)(i) Cloud storage can be free (for small quantities)
[1] (c)(i) No need for separate (high capacity) storage devices // saves storage on existing devices
[1] (c)(i) Can access data from any computer with internet access
[1] (c)(i) Most cloud data services will have in-built backup/disaster recovery
[1] (c)(i) Security could be better
[1] (c)(i) Can easily increase capacity
[1] (c)(i) Data can be easily shared
[1] (c)(ii) Can only access (the cloud) with internet access
[1] (c)(ii) Security may not be strong // no control over security
[1] (c)(ii) There may not be any backups // no control over backups
[1] (c)(ii) It can take a long time to upload/download the data
[1] (c)(ii) It can be more expensive in the long term
[1] (c)(ii) There could be a limit to the amount of storage unless paid for
[1] (c)(ii) There could be compatibility/access issues
[1] (c)(ii) There could be issues with the company offering cloud services
[1] (d) Public IP address matches It is visible to any device on the internet
[1] (d) Private IP address matches It is only visible to devices within the Local Area Network (LAN)
[1] (d) Dynamic IP address matches A new one is reallocated each time a device connects to the internet
[1] (d) Static IP address matches It does not change each time a device connects to the internet