Question 1: Explain in your own words what is meant by the term 'sampling' in digital sound representation.

Answer: Sampling is the process of measuring the amplitude of an analog sound wave at regular intervals to convert it into digital data.

Question 2: A digital audio file stores sound data using 16 bits per sample. How many different amplitude levels can each sample represent?

Answer: 65,536 levels (2^16).

Question 3: Describe what happens to the quality of a sound recording if the sampling rate is increased from 44,100 Hz to 96,000 Hz.

Answer: Increasing the sampling rate improves the sound quality by capturing more detail from the original sound wave, resulting in a more accurate reproduction.

Question 4: Complete the following table for digital sound data: | Sampling Rate | Bits per Sample | Approximate File Size for 10 seconds | |----------------|-----------------|----------------------------------------| | 44,100 Hz | 16 bits | ? | | 96,000 Hz | 24 bits | ? |

Answer: For 44,100 Hz and 16 bits: 10 seconds × 44,100 samples/sec × 16 bits = 7,056,000 bits ≈ 882,000 bytes or about 862.5 KB. For 96,000 Hz and 24 bits: 10 seconds × 96,000 samples/sec × 24 bits = 23,040,000 bits ≈ 2,880,000 bytes or about 2.81 MB.

Question 5: Sketch a block diagram showing the flow of digital sound data from a microphone to a computer's storage. Label the main components involved.

Answer: A correct sketch would show: Microphone → Analog-to-Digital Converter (ADC) → Data Buffer/Storage. Labels should include each component clearly.

Question 6: Draw a simple logic circuit that includes an AND gate and an OR gate. Label the inputs and output.

Answer: A correct drawing would include two inputs feeding into an AND gate and the same or different inputs feeding into an OR gate. The outputs of both gates should be shown, with the final output from the OR gate clearly labeled.

Question 7: Explain why higher bit depths in digital sound recordings result in larger file sizes.

Answer: Higher bit depths allow for more amplitude levels, which means more data per sample. This increases the total amount of data stored, resulting in larger files.

Question 8: Describe the effect of increasing the sampling rate on the amount of data generated during recording.

Answer: Increasing the sampling rate results in more samples being taken per second, which increases the overall amount of data generated, leading to larger file sizes.

Question 9: You are asked to convert an analog sound wave into digital form. List the three main parameters you would set on your recording device and their purpose.

Answer: Sampling rate (how often samples are taken), bit depth (the resolution of each sample), and duration (length of the recording).

Question 10: Explain the trade-off between sampling rate and file size when recording digital sound.

Answer: A higher sampling rate produces better sound quality but results in larger file sizes, while a lower sampling rate reduces file size but may decrease sound quality.