ME or MEng Master of Engineering Master of Software Engineering 3

Question 1

In the context of distributed systems, what does the CAP theorem state?

Accepted Answer

A distributed system can provide at most two of: Consistency, Availability, and Partition tolerance

Answer

CAP theorem proves that when a network partition occurs, a distributed system must choose between consistency and availability.

Question 2

Which design pattern ensures a class has only one instance and provides a global point of access to it?

Accepted Answer

Singleton

Answer

The Singleton pattern restricts instantiation of a class to a single object and provides a static accessor for that instance.

Question 3

What is 'technical debt' in software engineering?

Accepted Answer

The implied cost of future rework caused by choosing an expedient but suboptimal solution now

Answer

Technical debt describes the long-term maintenance burden incurred when shortcuts or poor design decisions are made to meet short-term goals.

Question 4

In OAuth 2.0, what is the role of the 'authorization code' flow's PKCE extension?

Accepted Answer

To prevent authorization code interception attacks in public clients

Answer

PKCE (Proof Key for Code Exchange) uses a code verifier/challenge pair to prevent an intercepted authorization code from being exchanged by a malicious actor.

Question 5

Which software process model is most appropriate when requirements are well-understood, stable, and the project has a fixed scope?

Accepted Answer

Waterfall

Answer

Waterfall suits projects with stable, well-defined requirements where each sequential phase (requirements → design → implementation → testing) can be completed before the next.

ME or MEng Master of Engineering Practice Test

ME or MEng Master of Engineering Practice Test

ME or MEng Master of Engineering Master of Software Engineering 3