Master Parallel and Distributed Algorithms: Enhance Your Computing Skills

Question 1

Which synchronization primitive ensures that only one thread executes a critical section at a time?

Accepted Answer

Mutex

Answer

Semaphore

Answer

Condition variable

Answer

Barrier

Question 2

What is the primary advantage of distributed algorithms over centralized algorithms?

Accepted Answer

Improved scalability

Answer

Reduced latency

Answer

Increased fault tolerance

Answer

Enhanced security

Question 3

Which load balancing technique assigns tasks to the least loaded processor?

Accepted Answer

Least-loaded

Answer

Round robin

Answer

Weighted fair queuing

Answer

First-come, first-served

Question 4

What is the main purpose of a barrier synchronization primitive?

Accepted Answer

To prevent threads from executing until all threads reach a particular point

Answer

To allow threads to execute concurrently

Answer

To ensure that only one thread can access a shared resource at a time

Answer

To balance the load among multiple processors

Question 5

What is a potential drawback of using message passing for communication in distributed algorithms?

Accepted Answer

High latency

Answer

Low bandwidth

Answer

Increased complexity

Answer

Reduced fault tolerance

Question 6

Which technique can be used to improve the performance of parallel algorithms by reducing the overhead of synchronization?

Accepted Answer

Lock-free programming

Answer

Transactional memory

Answer

Dataflow programming

Answer

Message queues

Question 7

What is the purpose of a distributed hash table (DHT)?

Accepted Answer

To provide efficient and scalable storage for large amounts of data

Answer

To facilitate communication among distributed nodes

Answer

To ensure that all nodes in a distributed system have the same copy of the data

Answer

To balance the load among multiple processors

Question 8

Explain the difference between a lock-free algorithm and a wait-free algorithm?

Accepted Answer

Lock-free algorithms guarantee that no thread will be indefinitely blocked, while wait-free algorithms guarantee that all threads will make progress

Answer

Wait-free algorithms guarantee that no thread will be indefinitely blocked, while lock-free algorithms guarantee that all threads will make progress

Answer

Lock-free algorithms are more efficient than wait-free algorithms

Answer

Wait-free algorithms are more scalable than lock-free algorithms

Question 9

In multithreaded programming, what is a primary challenge posed by race conditions?

Accepted Answer

Ensuring exclusive access to shared data among threads.

Answer

Predicting the exact execution order of threads.

Answer

Preventing deadlocks between threads.

Answer

Managing thread priorities and preemption.

Question 10

Which concept is NOT fundamental to parallel and distributed algorithms?

Accepted Answer

Data encapsulation

Answer

Concurrency

Answer

Synchronization

Answer

Load balancing

Question 11

Which load balancing approach assigns tasks to processors dynamically based on their workload?

Accepted Answer

Dynamic assignment

Answer

Round-robin scheduling

Answer

Static assignment

Answer

First-come, first-served

Question 12

Which programming paradigm aligns well with parallel and distributed computing due to its emphasis on independent tasks?

Accepted Answer

Functional programming

Answer

Object-oriented programming

Answer

Logic programming

Answer

Imperative programming

Question 13

Which distributed algorithm is commonly employed to determine the maximum element in a distributed array?

Accepted Answer

Reduce

Answer

Map

Answer

Filter

Answer

Sort

Question 14

Which primary advantage of parallel computing significantly enhances computational speed and efficiency?

Accepted Answer

Increased speed and efficiency

Answer

Enhanced reliability

Answer

Reduced power consumption

Answer

Improved security

Question 15

Which synchronization technique exclusively grants access to shared data to a single process at any given moment?

Accepted Answer

Mutual exclusion

Answer

Semaphores

Answer

Barriers

Answer

Deadlock prevention

Question 16

Which load balancing algorithm dynamically assigns tasks to processors based on their varying workloads?

Accepted Answer

Dynamic

Answer

Round-robin

Answer

Static

Answer

Adaptive

Question 17

Which characteristic is NOT typically associated with distributed systems?

Accepted Answer

Shared memory

Answer

Concurrent execution

Answer

Independent failure modes

Answer

Message passing

Question 18

Which popular message-passing interface is commonly used for parallel programming in C/C++?

Accepted Answer

MPI

Answer

OpenMP

Answer

POSIX Threads

Answer

CUDA

Question 19

Which algorithm is widely used for efficient parallel sorting of large datasets?

Accepted Answer

Merge sort

Answer

Bubble sort

Answer

Quick sort

Answer

Insertion sort

Question 20

Which cloud computing model offers the greatest degree of control over infrastructure management?

Accepted Answer

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)

Answer

Software as a Service (SaaS)

Answer

Platform as a Service (PaaS)

Answer

Serverless computing

Question 21

What is a key advantage of using a distributed file system?

Accepted Answer

Increased data availability and resilience

Answer

Enhanced performance

Answer

Lower implementation and maintenance costs

Answer

Simplified management and administration

Question 22

Within the context of parallel computing, which of the following terms accurately captures the ability for multiple tasks to execute concurrently?

Accepted Answer

Concurrency

Answer

Sequential execution

Answer

Resource allocation

Answer

Deadlock avoidance

Question 23

In parallel algorithms, the importance of synchronization lies in its ability to guarantee:

Accepted Answer

Accuracy in accessing shared data

Answer

Exclusive access to shared resources

Answer

Optimal use of available resources

Answer

Prevention of all potential deadlocks

Question 24

When discussing load balancing techniques used in parallel computing, which approach focuses on distributing tasks evenly across processors, taking into account their current workload?

Accepted Answer

Dynamic load balancing

Answer

Static load balancing

Answer

Round-robin scheduling

Answer

Priority-based scheduling

Question 25

In parallel computing, a shared memory system allows for:

Accepted Answer

Concurrent access to a common memory space

Answer

Prevention of data races and memory leaks

Answer

Enforcement of mutual exclusion between tasks

Answer

Simplified communication between tasks

Question 26

In the context of parallel computing, problems that can be effortlessly divided into independent tasks suitable for parallel execution are often referred to as:

Accepted Answer

Embarrassingly parallel problems

Answer

Inherently sequential problems

Answer

Specialized hardware problems

Answer

Non-parallelizable problems

Question 27

Among the following distributed algorithms, which is widely used to establish consensus among multiple processes?

Accepted Answer

Paxos

Answer

Dijkstra's algorithm

Answer

Merge sort

Answer

Breadth-first search

Question 28

In a parallel system, deadlock occurs when:

Accepted Answer

Multiple processes wait indefinitely for resources currently held by each other

Answer

A process attempts to access a resource that is already allocated

Answer

The system's memory capacity is exceeded

Answer

A process unexpectedly terminates

Question 29

In a distributed system, what is the primary function of consensus algorithms?

Accepted Answer

To ensure all non-malicious nodes agree on a single value, even if some nodes fail.

Answer

To manage data replication across multiple data centers.

Answer

To guarantee agreement even in the presence of malicious nodes.

Question 30

In selecting between message passing and shared memory programming models for parallel algorithms, which factors are most critical to consider?

Accepted Answer

Communication patterns, data locality, and synchronization mechanisms

Answer

Algorithm complexity, problem size, and programming language

Answer

Number of processors and available memory

Question 31

Which law helps predict the maximum speedup achievable by a parallel algorithm, considering the limitations of sequential parts?

Accepted Answer

Amdahl's Law

Answer

Gustafson's Law

Answer

Speedup

Answer

Latency

Question 32

Which of the following is NOT a potential benefit of parallel computing?

Accepted Answer

Increased memory capacity

Answer

Enhanced scalability

Answer

Reduced execution time

Question 33

What is the key objective of synchronization in distributed systems?

Accepted Answer

To guarantee consistent and orderly access to shared resources

Answer

To enhance communication speed between processes

Answer

To prevent data loss

Question 34

What is a major drawback of the message passing paradigm?

Accepted Answer

Increased communication overhead

Answer

Limited fault tolerance

Answer

Complex programming model

Answer

Reduced scalability

Question 35

Which type of parallelism involves executing independent tasks or processes concurrently?

Accepted Answer

Task parallelism

Answer

Data parallelism

Answer

Pipeline parallelism

Answer

Vector parallelism

Question 36

What is the primary purpose of a distributed hash table (DHT)?

Accepted Answer

To store and retrieve data across multiple nodes in a distributed system

Answer

To provide fault tolerance

Answer

To accelerate inter-process communication

Question 37

Which fault tolerance technique entails replicating data across multiple nodes?

Accepted Answer

Replication

Answer

Checkpointing

Answer

Error correction codes

Answer

Load balancing

Question 38

What is the primary challenge in designing distributed algorithms?

Accepted Answer

Managing concurrency and ensuring consistency

Answer

Handling communication failures

Answer

Designing efficient data structures

Answer

Optimizing performance

Question 39

What is the key advantage of utilizing a parallel prefix sum algorithm?

Accepted Answer

Significant speedup in comparison to sequential algorithms

Answer

Enhanced precision

Answer

Reduced memory usage

Answer

Simplified coding

Question 40

In a message passing system, which condition must be met for one process to send a message to another?

Accepted Answer

The destination process must be known and alive.

Answer

The network must guarantee reliable delivery of messages.

Answer

The message size must be within a certain limit.

Answer

The processes must be running on the same computer.

Question 41

Which of the following is a key characteristic of parallel algorithms?

Accepted Answer

They can be executed on multiple processors simultaneously.

Answer

They require a centralized coordinator process.

Answer

They are always more efficient than sequential algorithms.

Answer

They are only suitable for small-scale computations.

Question 42

Synchronization primitives serve which purpose in distributed algorithms?

Accepted Answer

To ensure that processes cooperate and communicate correctly.

Answer

To reduce the number of messages exchanged.

Answer

To improve the network performance.

Question 43

What is the primary goal of load balancing in distributed algorithms?

Accepted Answer

To evenly distribute the workload across available processors.

Answer

To reduce the latency of communication.

Answer

To improve the fault tolerance of the algorithm.

Answer

To minimize the number of processors used.

Question 44

Which among the following is an example of a distributed data structure?

Accepted Answer

Distributed hash table

Answer

Array

Answer

Linked list

Answer

Binary search tree

Question 45

Which technique can enhance the fault tolerance of distributed algorithms?

Accepted Answer

Replication

Answer

Synchronization

Answer

Message passing

Answer

Load balancing

Question 46

What is the intended usage of the MapReduce programming model?

Accepted Answer

To process vast datasets in a distributed environment.

Answer

To implement synchronization primitives for distributed algorithms.

Answer

To develop parallel algorithms for shared-memory systems.

Question 47

Which metric serves as an indicator of performance for parallel and distributed algorithms?

Accepted Answer

Speedup

Answer

Reliability

Answer

Usability

Answer

Accuracy

Question 48

Parallel and distributed computing technology offers which potential advantage?

Accepted Answer

Increased computational power

Answer

Shorter development time

Answer

Reduced hardware costs

Answer

Improved user experience

Question 49

Which of the following is NOT a benefit of using parallel and distributed algorithms?

Accepted Answer

Increased complexity in algorithm design.

Answer

Enhanced scalability for handling large datasets.

Answer

Improved performance for computationally intensive tasks.

Answer

Potential for reduced latency in data processing.

Question 50

What is the primary challenge in designing a parallel algorithm for a problem with inherent sequential dependencies?

Accepted Answer

Maintaining data consistency and avoiding race conditions.

Answer

Optimizing for memory utilization.

Answer

Balancing computational workload across processors.

Question 51

Which synchronization mechanism is commonly used to prevent race conditions in shared memory parallel programming?

Accepted Answer

Semaphores

Answer

Message passing

Answer

Load balancing algorithms.

Answer

Distributed consensus

Question 52

A parallel algorithm that breaks down a problem into independent sub-problems, solves them individually, and then combines the results is known as:

Accepted Answer

Divide and conquer.

Answer

Greedy algorithm.

Answer

Backtracking.

Answer

Dynamic programming.

Question 53

In a distributed system, which technique is essential for maintaining a consistent view of shared data across multiple nodes?

Accepted Answer

Distributed consensus.

Answer

Task partitioning.

Answer

Load balancing.

Answer

Message queuing.

Question 54

What is the primary goal of load balancing in parallel and distributed computing?

Accepted Answer

Distributing workload evenly across available processors to optimize performance.

Answer

Ensuring data consistency.

Answer

Minimizing communication overhead.

Question 55

Which of the following is an example of a distributed file system commonly used in parallel and distributed computing environments?

Accepted Answer

Hadoop Distributed File System (HDFS)

Answer

FAT32.

Answer

NTFS.

Answer

Ext4.

Question 56

In a message-passing parallel programming model, how do processes communicate with each other?

Accepted Answer

By exchanging messages through explicit send and receive operations.

Answer

By using semaphores for synchronization.

Answer

Through shared memory access.

Question 57

Which of the following is a common challenge associated with designing and implementing distributed algorithms?

Accepted Answer

Handling network failures and ensuring fault tolerance.

Answer

Optimizing for cache utilization.

Answer

Minimizing memory fragmentation.

Question 58

Which technique is commonly used to improve the efficiency of parallel algorithms by reducing communication overhead between processors?

Accepted Answer

Data locality and communication optimization.

Answer

Load balancing.

Answer

Distributed consensus.

Answer

Process synchronization.