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2018

Cambridge A Level · 9608 · Paper 3 · Advanced theory

Computer Science 9608/31 Oct/Nov 2018 past paper

Cambridge A Level Computer Science (9608) (previous syllabus, now 9618) Paper 3 (Advanced theory), variant 1, Oct/Nov 2018: the question paper and its official mark scheme, 6 questions worth 75 marks, with the grade thresholds. Free to open, no account needed.

Questions
6
Marks
75
Grade A from
55
Open the question paperMark scheme

File names: 9608_w18_qp_31 · 9608_w18_ms_31

Grade thresholds for 9608/31 Oct/Nov 2018

The minimum raw marks Cambridge set for each grade on this component (out of 75). Thresholds change every session and variant, so always compare your score with the paper you actually sat.

ABCDE
5547393225

Topics in this paper

Which syllabus chapters 9608/31 Oct/Nov 2018 tested, by marks. Each chapter links to every past-paper question on it.

ChapterQuestionsMarks
System Software (A Level)224
Data Representation219
Hardware and Virtual Machines117
Communication115

Questions in 9608/31 Oct/Nov 2018

  1. Question 1Data Representation · 4 marks

    Consider the following user‑defined data type. TYPE Book DECLARE ISBN : INTEGER DECLARE Author : STRING DECLARE Title : STRING DECLARE Supplier : (Amazone, Stones, Smiths, Blackwalls, Greens, Coals, Boarders) ENDTYPE (a) Name the data type of Book. (b) Name …

  2. Question 2Data Representation · 15 marks

    (a) A computer system stores real numbers using floating‑point representation. The floating‑point numbers have: • eight bits for the mantissa • four bits for the exponent. The mantissa and exponent are both in two’s complement form. (i) Calculate the denary …

  3. Question 3Communication · 15 marks

    A local college has CSMA/CD in operation on its Local Area Network (LAN). (a) One function of CSMA/CD is to monitor traffic on the network. State two other tasks performed by CSMA/CD. …

  4. Question 4Hardware and Virtual Machines · 17 marks

    (a) A Boolean expression corresponds to the following truth table. INPUT OUTPUT …

  5. Question 5System Software (A Level) · 11 marks

    A computer process can be in one of three states: running, ready or blocked. (a) Explain how the processes are affected when the following events take place. (i) The running process needs to read a file from a disk. (ii) …

  6. Question 6System Software (A Level) · 13 marks

    The compilation process has a number of stages. The first stage is lexical analysis. A compiler uses a keyword table and a symbol table. Part of the keyword table is shown. • Tokens for keywords are shown in hexadecimal. • …

Other Computer Science papers from Oct/Nov 2018

Questions students ask

Where can I get the 9608/31 Oct/Nov 2018 mark scheme?
Open the mark scheme above - it is the official Cambridge scheme for this exact paper (9608_w18_ms_31), and on a wide screen it sits beside the question you are reading.
What was the grade threshold for an A in 9608/31 Oct/Nov 2018?
55 marks out of 75, a C needed 39.
Which topics came up in 9608/31 Oct/Nov 2018?
Mostly System Software (A Level), Data Representation, Hardware and Virtual Machines. The full list is in the table above.
Do I need an account to open 9608/31 Oct/Nov 2018?
No. Every paper opens for free without signing in. A free account also saves your pen marks and records your score against the grade thresholds.