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Questions and Answers
What distinguishes an imperative programming language from a declarative programming language?
What distinguishes an imperative programming language from a declarative programming language?
In non-strict functional languages, how are the same results as control flow statements achieved?
In non-strict functional languages, how are the same results as control flow statements achieved?
What are the only control flow instructions available for some CPUs at the machine language level?
What are the only control flow instructions available for some CPUs at the machine language level?
At the level of machine language or assembly language, how do control flow instructions usually work?
At the level of machine language or assembly language, how do control flow instructions usually work?
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How do interrupts and signals alter the flow of control?
How do interrupts and signals alter the flow of control?
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What is control flow in computer science?
What is control flow in computer science?
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What distinguishes an imperative programming language from a declarative programming language?
What distinguishes an imperative programming language from a declarative programming language?
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How are interrupts and signals related to control flow?
How are interrupts and signals related to control flow?
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In non-strict functional languages, how are the same results as control flow statements achieved?
In non-strict functional languages, how are the same results as control flow statements achieved?
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How do control flow instructions usually work at the machine language level?
How do control flow instructions usually work at the machine language level?
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Study Notes
Control Flow in Computer Science
- Control flow refers to the order in which individual statements, instructions, or function calls are executed in a program.
- It determines how a program's execution moves from one point to another based on conditions, loops, and function calls.
Imperative vs. Declarative Programming Languages
- Imperative programming specifies how to perform tasks using statements to change program state; it focuses on the control flow.
- Declarative programming emphasizes what the program should accomplish without detailing how to achieve it, often resulting in a higher level of abstraction.
Control Flow in Non-Strict Functional Languages
- Non-strict functional languages use constructs like higher-order functions, lazy evaluation, and recursion to achieve control flow without traditional statements.
- Pattern matching and tail recursion are commonly used to simulate control flow constructs found in imperative languages.
Control Flow Instructions at the Machine Language Level
- CPUs typically offer a limited set of control flow instructions, such as jumps, branches, and calls, to manage the program execution flow.
- These instructions allow the program to make decisions and repeat processes based on conditions during execution.
Mechanism of Control Flow Instructions
- Control flow instructions work by modifying the program counter, the register that tracks the address of the next instruction to execute.
- Conditional branches affect program execution based on the truth value of a condition, determining the next instruction to run.
Interrupts and Signals
- Interrupts are hardware signals that temporarily halt the current execution to allow the CPU to address event requests, such as I/O operations.
- Signals are software interrupts sent to a process to notify it of events like errors; both can change the control flow by transferring control to specific handlers.
Relationship Between Interrupts, Signals, and Control Flow
- Interrupts and signals create asynchronous flows within a program, enabling it to respond to external events outside of its linear execution path.
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Description
Test your knowledge of control flow in computer programming with this quiz. Explore the order of execution of statements and function calls, and distinguish between imperative and declarative programming languages.
