•Accounting Information Systems, 11e (Bodnar/Hopwood)
Chapter 13 Data Management Concepts
1) The terms field, data item, attribute, and element are synonyms.
2) A field would be composed of “customer name” and “customer account number.”
3) Variable-length records are easier to manipulate than fixed-length records because the size of
the variable-length record is generally smaller than the fixed-length record.
4) Occurrences are also known as instances.
5) Related groups of fields that repeat themselves in variable-length records are called repeated
groups.
6) It is useful to sort the records in a file so that they are either in ascending or descending order
relative to the sort key.
7) The entity-relationship data model is perhaps the most promising modeling technique.
8) The tree database structure corresponds to the data structure supported by COBOL and other
widely used programming languages.
9) Network systems are pointer-based systems that allow users to browse through databases in
random fashion by selecting keywords or objects.
10) Relational databases use relational algebra to create tables.
11) Nominalization is the process of applying rules to normal forms in relational database
structures.
12) In the first normal form, repeated groups are allowed.
13) An index file is fully inverted when indexes exist for all of its fields.
14) Sequential-access files are often referred to as ISAM files.
15) Using the direct-access method, the only thing needed to locate a record is its key value.
16) Using the direct-access method, congestion results when two or more records yield the same
address.
17) The length of time the user must wait for the system to complete an operation is known as
downtime.
18) Records are contiguous when they are physically next to each other on a disk.
19) The logical structure of a database is called a schema.
20) DBMS is a user-friendly computer language or interface that allows the user to request
information from the database.
21) SQL is a non-procedural programming language.
22) In SQL, WHERE must be used to determine which records from the tables listed in the
FROM clause will appear in the results of the SELECT statement.
23) Individual logical expressions may be combined in a FROM clause with the Boolean
operator AND in SQL.
24) In some respects, the word “file” loses its meaning in a database environment.
25) Database software primarily deals with the physical aspects of file use, while accounting
application software deals with the logical aspect of file use.
26) A major advantage of DBMS is its ability to construct special database files quickly and
efficiently.
27) A data dictionary can only be used with a DBMS.
28) A database alias can also arise because the same data item is called different things in
different programs written in different languages.
29) When a DBA is present and active within an organization, users are almost always willing to
give up their responsibility for data elements.
30) A database is a structured collection of data stored in a computer system or network.
31) A database together with database software is database agnosticity.
32) A database management system is independent of the application software therefore
permitting upgrading or modifying the eBusiness application without changing data or database
software. This is referred to as database agnosticity.
33) Software tools such as Casewise are used to visually represent the E-R models.
34) Database drivers, NOT database connectors, can be used to connect the business application
to the DBMS.
35) Object-oriented modeling can be easily transformed into OO program code.
36) The move to object-oriented design is due to the fact that OO databases outperform relational
databases in a wide range of common tasks that are typically performed in a business
environment.
37) OLAP is a multidimensional generalization of the 3-dimensional relational table.
38) An advantage of OLAP is its fast response time.
39) OLAP uses simple multidimensional “indexes” called aggregations in data mining
applications.
40) A petabyte is 1015 bytes (characters).
41) In-memory database differs from conventional databases in that the entire database is loaded
into computer-internal high-speed random access memory or other high-speed electronic storage
device.
42) ACID is used to prevent database fraud.
43) The smallest block of data that can be stored and retrieved in an information system is a(n)
________.
44) ________ are one of the fundamental building blocks used to construct databases.
45) The term ________ ________ order applies to a field on which the file is not sorted.
46) In the E-R conceptual model, the term ________ is used instead of segment, and the term
________ is used to refer to individual fields or data items.
47) ________ fields cross-link segments in tree and network database structures.
48) A row in a relational database table is called a(n) ________.
49) In an ISAM file organization, the portion of the disk on which the actual records are written
is the ________ area.
50) A file that allows an individual to almost instantaneously retrieve records without the use of
an index is a(n) ________-access file.
51) The computer language that allows a DBA to define the logical structure of the database is
called ________.
52) The first word usually found in an SQL statement intended to extract data from a database is
________.
53) A database ________ is a collection of all data item names in a database, along with a
description of the standardized representation form of the data items.
54) An invaluable benefit of DBMSs is their ability to provide ________ for databases.
55) One primary objective of a data dictionary is to eliminate data ________ to the extent
feasible.
56) ________ refers to the physical form that data will be stored in, such as BCD or EBCDIC.
57) Database ________ permits upgrading or modifying the eBusiness application without
changing data or database software.
58) A software database ________, also called a database connector, can be used to connect the
business application to the DBMS.
59) OLAP is a multidimensional generalization of the 2-dimensional ________ table.
60) When the entire database is loaded into computer-internal high-speed random access
memory or other high speed electronic storage device, it is called ________ database.
61) The “A” in ACID stands for ________.
62) ________ in ACID means a transaction is not undone if the system fails after it is completed.
63) Fields associated with other fields in a logical grouping are known as
A) elements.
B) records.
C) data items.
D) attributes.
64) In the CUSTOMER record, the field NAME contains the word “Jones” along with 20 spaces
after the last character. This is an example of a
A) variable-length record.
B) data item.
C) fixed-length record.
D) trailer.
65) In data management terminology, a record occurrence is a
A) secondary sort key.
B) trailer record containing additional data.
C) method of specifying variable-length records.
D) specific example of a record structure.
66) A trailer record is an extension of a(n)
A) master record.
B) attribute.
C) segment.
D) transaction record.
67) Variable-length records have characteristics that are not found in fixed-length records. An
example of such a characteristic is
A) the field width can be adjusted for each data occurrence.
B) because of their size, most records stored on DASD are variable-length records.
C) the actual number of fields can vary from one data occurrence to another.
D) the field width can be adjusted for each data occurrence and the actual number of fields can
vary from one data occurrence to another.
68) In the record format
STORE (STORE_NO, CITY, VEND#1,VEND#2)
which field is repeated?
A) STORE
B) CITY
C) VEND
D) STORE_NO
69) In the record format
STORE (STORE_NO, CITY, VEND#1,VEND#2)
which field is the parent?
A) STORE
B) CITY
C) VEND
D) STORE_NO
70) In the record format
STORE (STORE_NO, CITY, VEND#1,VEND#2)
which field is the key?
A) STORE
B) STORE_NO
C) VEND
D) CITY
71) The difference between segments and simple records is that
A) simple records have parents and children.
B) segment are collections of fields.
C) segments have parents and children.
D) segments have no fields.
72) A data item or combination of data items that uniquely identify a particular record in a file is
called a(n)
A) key.
B) occurrence.
C) attribute.
D) variable-length field.
73) Four records have the record structure: PART (PART_NO, WARHSE).
PART (101,1)
PART (101,2)
PART (103,1)
PART (106,1)
Which of the following would be appropriate to use as a record key?
A) PART
B) PART_NO
C) WARHSE
D) Answers B and C combined would form a record key.
74) To process and locate records in files, it is necessary to use a(n)
A) attribute.
B) key or record key.
C) parent.
D) element.
75) Four records have the record structure: EQUIPMENT (EQUIP#, LOCATION).
EQUIPMENT (204,1)
EQUIPMENT (204,2)
EQUIPMENT (208,1)
EQUIPMENT (209,1)
When sorting these records, which field is the primary sort key and which field is the secondary
sort key?
A) EQUIPMENT is primary; no secondary sort key is required.
B) EQUIP# is primary; no secondary sort key is required.
C) EQUIP# is primary; LOCATION is the secondary key.
D) LOCATION is primary; EQUIP# is the secondary key.
76) A database is defined in terms of the kind of information it includes and the purposes for
which it is to be used. This is an example of defining database architecture at the
A) logical level.
B) conceptual level.
C) physical level.
D) relational level.
77) An analyst has identified a certain database as “indexed-sequential.” This is an example of
defining database architecture at the
A) physical level.
B) conceptual level.
C) logical level.
D) relational level.
78) A database has a hierarchical data structure. This is an example of defining database
architecture at the
A) physical level.
B) conceptual level.
C) sequential level.
D) logical level.
79) In an entity-relationship data model, the concepts of part number, type, and cost are known
as
A) entities.
B) attributes.
C) relations.
D) objects.
80) In the object-oriented modeling technique, related groups of fields are known as
A) objects.
B) parents.
C) children.
D) object classes.
81) In the entity-relationship model, a diamond shape in a diagram represents
A) a relationship.
B) an entity.
C) an attribute.
D) an object.
82) In the object-oriented database modeling technique, an object class divided into subclasses
represents an
A) object.
B) entity.
C) inheritance relationship.
D) object class.
83) In the object-oriented modeling technique, an object class has the following structure:
PAPER_INVENTORY (SUPPLIER_NO, DISCOUNT)
What is the structure of the subclass COPY having the unique attributes QUANTITY and
TYPE?
A) COPY (QUANTITY, TYPE)
B) COPY (SUPPLIER_NO, QUANTITY, TYPE)
C) COPY (SUPPLIER_NO, DISCOUNT, QUANTITY, TYPE)
D) COPY (PAPER_INVENTORY, QUANTITY, TYPE)
84) Network, tree, and relational models are examples of database structure at which level?
A) Physical level
B) Logical level
C) Conceptual level
D) Hierarchical level
85) The database structure which allows a child segment to have more than one parent is the
A) network.
B) sequential.
C) tree.
D) object.
86) The logical structure most commonly used in business today is the
A) tree structure.
B) network structure.
C) hierarchical structure.
D) relational structure.
87) Pointer fields are not used in
A) relational structures.
B) list structures.
C) hypertext models.
D) semantic data networks.
88) Tables without repeating groups in a relational database are said to be
A) unnormalized.
B) in the first normal form.
C) in the second normal form.
D) in the third normal form.
89) In a relational database, tables that do not have any nonkey fields determining the values of
other nonkey fields are said to be
A) in the first normal form.
B) in the second normal form.
C) in the third normal form.
D) unnormalized.
90) In a relational database, tables in which no key field is allowed to determine the values of
any nonkey field are said to be
A) unnormalized.
B) in the third normal form.
C) in the first normal form.
D) in the second normal form.
91) Sequential-access files are useful
A) when only a small number of records need to be accessed in a file containing a large number
of records.
B) in batch processing.
C) when files are unsorted.
D) when a large accounts receivable master file is in random account number order.
92) What data are stored in the index of an indexed file?
A) The keys and the disk addresses of the individual records
B) The disk addresses of the individual records
C) All essential fields for the individual records
D) The keys for the individual records
93) The processing time required to maintain a fully inverted file
A) is fast since the entire index can be loaded into primary memory.
B) is almost instantaneous because long indexes can be factored into subindexes.
C) is fast when two processors are used simultaneously to process the data and index files at the
same time.
D) can be high since the indexes require more disk storage and must be updated whenever
records are added, deleted, or changed.
94) The processing and inquiry objectives of file usage are both addressed by
A) sequential-access file organization.
B) fully inverted index file organization.
C) indexed-sequential file organization.
D) direct-access file organization.
95) Which of the following is characteristic of the indexed-sequential access method?
A) Processing is direct-access; queries are sequential.
B) Processing is sequential; queries are handled through an index.
C) Processing and queries are both handled through an index.
D) Processing and queries are both sequential.
96) An indexed-sequential file contains
A) an index, a prime area, and an overflow area.
B) an index, a parent file, and a child file.
C) an index, an access area, and a hierarchical file.
D) an index, an overflow area, and a fully inverted file.
97) The purpose of the index in an ISAM file is to
A) increase the time needed to write records on the prime area.
B) bump records to the overflow area when no prime space is available.
C) link the record key to the address.
D) search tracks for the desired record.
98) A widely used method of storing and locating records in a direct-access file is
A) when a record’s key field corresponds directly to the coding scheme used by the computer
itself.
B) to store physical device addresses as a field within a file’s records.
C) to convert a key to a storage location address using an index.
D) to convert a key to a storage location address using a randomizing transformation.
99) The use of a randomizing transformation to process transactions against a direct-access
master file is based on
A) comparing the master record key and the transaction record key for equality.
B) converting the transaction record key to a storage area location address by using a
mathematical algorithm.
C) searching a list structure for the associated master file record.
D) searching an index for the associated master file record.
100) Overflow in a directly-accessed file means
A) hashing a record to an address.
B) vacant storage space created by the hashing results.
C) extra storage space is required because the hashing results in more than one record being
assigned to the same address.
D) a separate section of the disk is allocated for file additions.
101) The basic economics of file processing are largely determined by the activity ratio, which is
the
A) number of times a master file is accessed during a period.
B) average number of transactions contained in a transaction file.
C) number of accessed records times the number of records in the file.
D) number of accessed records divided by the number of records in the file.