ITPEC IP April 2022 Question 8
ITPEC IP April 2022 — Question 8 of 100
Programs written in high-level languages such as Fortran or C are translated into machine language before the processor executes them. A compiler or related tool converts source code into instructions encoded for the target processor architecture. The CPU directly interprets those machine instructions.
Answer (a)
Why not others:
- (b) machine language is the lowest-level executable language, not a high-level language
- (c) machine instructions are fundamentally encoded as bit patterns, not sequences of decimal numbers
- (d) most application software is written in higher-level languages because direct machine-code programming is difficult and hardware-specific
Key rule: Humans normally author high-level source code; translation tools produce the architecture-specific machine code executed by the CPU.
AI-generated — may contain errors
The original exam layout is preserved in the image so diagrams, formulas, tables, and code remain accurate.
This question comes from an official ITPEC past paper. ITPEC Practice is an independent study tool and is not affiliated with ITPEC. See the official IP past-paper collection or Report an issue.