LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY

EXAMINATION
Computer Science

3413 FA

SUBJECT

COURSE NO. SECTION

Database Management Systems

COURSE TITLE

Dec. 10, 2011, AT1007

EXAM DATE

Type of Examination:

Computer Science
DEPARTMENT OF

Dr. F. Allaire
INSTRUCTOR

9:00 a.m. to 12:01 p.m., 3 HOURS

EXAM TIME AND DURATION

FINAL MID-TERM SPECIAL DEFERRED

Authorized Memoranda /Materials:

One text book, personal handwritten notes and up to 20 pages of other
material. Two sided sheets count as 2 pages.

Only the last two pages of this examination paper MAY be taken from the examination
room.
The Department of Computer Science regards cheating as a serious matter, one
requiring strong counteraction. The Department requires its instructors to report
all instances of cheating to the Chairman, who shall seek a severe penalty
consistent with the offense and the evidence, up to and including expulsion from
the University, under the terms and procedures of the Lakehead University Code
of Student Behavior and Disciplinary Procedures, 1985.
Students please note:

This question paper has 8 pages.

YOU MUST count the number of pages in this question paper BEFORE beginning to
write, and report any discrepancy immediately to a proctor.

This is page 1 of 8

Computer Science 3413

Final Exam, Dec. 15, 2010

Name __________________________________
Page 2

True-False Questions: Circle the correct answer [ 18 marks]

Database development begins with the design of the
database.
TRUE
FALSE
Business rules govern the validity of data.
TRUE
FALSE
Database development projects are never done in a
bottom-up fashion.
TRUE
FALSE
Enterprise modeling sets the range and general contents
of organizational databases.
TRUE
FALSE
Database maintenance is typically the longest step of
the database development process.
TRUE
FALSE
In prototyping, implementation and maintenance
activities are repeated as necessary until the product is
correct.
TRUE
FALSE
Universal data models are templates for one or more
subject areas and/or functions.
TRUE
FALSE
A repository is a type of knowledge base that contains
both facts and processes.
TRUE
FALSE
A project may be discontinued if it cannot be rejustified
as part of the incremental commitment process.
TRUE
FALSE
A physical schema contains the specifications for how
data from a conceptual schema are stored in a
computers secondary memory.
TRUE
FALSE
In the client/server environment, all records from the
database server are sent to the client, which then
processes the query.
TRUE
FALSE
An important advantage of the client/server
architecture is that it facilitates separating the
development of the database and the modules that
maintain the database from the development of
modules that present the contents of the database to
end users.
TRUE
FALSE

A primary key is an attribute that uniquely identifies

each row in a relation.
TRUE
FALSE
There can be multivalued attributes in a relation.
TRUE
FALSE
Sample data are useful for developing prototype
applications and for testing queries.
TRUE
FALSE
The entity integrity rule states that a primary key
attribute can be null.
TRUE
FALSE
A well-structured relation contains minimal redundancy
and allows users to manipulate the relation without
errors or inconsistencies.
TRUE
FALSE
The primary key of the many side migrates to the one
side when transforming a one-to-many relationship.
TRUE
FALSE
The relational data model does at this time directly
support subtype/supertype relationships.
TRUE
FALSE
A candidate key is an attribute, or combination of
attributes, that uniquely identifies a row in a relation.
TRUE
FALSE
A transversal dependency is a functional dependency
between two or more nonkey attributes.
TRUE
FALSE
When two or more attributes describe the same
characteristic of an entity, they are synonyms.
TRUE
FALSE
The joining condition of an equi-join is based upon an
equality.
TRUE
FALSE
One major disadvantage of the outer join is that
information is easily lost.
TRUE
FALSE
EXISTS takes a value of false if the subquery returns an
intermediate result set.
TRUE
FALSE

Computer Science 3413

Final Exam, Dec. 15, 2010
A correlated subquery is executed once for each
iteration through the outer loop.
TRUE
FALSE
A transaction is the complete set of closely related
update commands that must all be done, or none of
them done, for the database to remain valid.
TRUE
FALSE
DBA_USERS contains comments on all tables in an
Oracle database.
TRUE
FALSE
Triggers can be used to ensure referential integrity,
enforce business rules, create audit trails, replicate
tables, but cannot call other triggers.
TRUE
FALSE

Name __________________________________
Page 3
Organizations adopt data mart architectures because it
is easier to have separate, small data warehouses than to
get all organizational parties to agree to one view of
the organization in a central data warehouse.
TRUE
FALSE
An operational data store is typically a relational
database and normalized, but it is tuned for decisionmaking applications.
TRUE
FALSE
Logical data marts are physically separate databases
from the enterprise data warehouse.
TRUE
FALSE
Scalable technology is critical to a data mart.
TRUE
FALSE

The advantages of SQL-invoked routines are flexibility,

efficiency, sharability and applicability.
TRUE
FALSE

An event is a database action that results from a

transaction.
TRUE
FALSE

Advances in computer hardware, particularly the

emergence of affordable mass storage and parallel
computer architectures, was one of the key advances
that led to the emergence of data warehousing.
TRUE
FALSE

Drill-down involves analyzing a given set of data at a

finer level of detail.
TRUE
FALSE

When multiple systems in an organization are

synchronized, the need for data warehousing increases.
TRUE
FALSE

The representation of data in a graphical format is

called data mining.
TRUE
FALSE

SHORT ANSWER: Write the word or phrase from this exams final page that best
completes each statement or answers the question. [30 marks ]
Databases are an organized collection of ________

The separation of data descriptors from the

_____________ data.

application program that uses the data is called

With the traditional file-processing approach, users

____________________________ .

have little opportunity to ____________________

data outside of their own applications.

_________________ _______________ are used to

create and maintain the database as well as provide
information to users.

_________________ is data that describes the

properties or characteristics of other data.

___________________ databases are designed to

support one user.

In the beginning of computer-based data processing,

______________ were used instead of databases.

A(n) ________________ ____________ supports

organization-wide operations and decisions.

A(n) ________________ is a rule that cannot be

violated by the database users.

A(n) ___________ _____________ is a separate

database that contains summarized and historical
information.

Computer Science 3413

Final Exam, Dec. 15, 2010
A subgrouping of the entities in an entity type that
shares common attributes or relationships is called a(n)
_____________ .
A ___________ ___________ is a constraint that
addresses the question of whether an instance of a
supertype may simultaneously be a member of two or
more subtypes.
A packaged data model can either be ____________ or
_________________ _____________.
A(n) ___________________ _______________ is a
statement of a control or constraint on the actions of
an organization.
An integrity constraint states that something must
always be ___________ .
The _________________________________ is a
set of commands used to maintain and query a database.

Name __________________________________
Page 4
Adding the keyword _______________ to an SQL
query will eliminate duplicate rows from the query result
set.
Controls incorporated into a data management system
that restrict access to data are called
_________ __________ .
The coding or scrambling of data so that humans
cannot read them is called _____.
A ______________ _________________ measures
or detects personal characteristics such as fingerprints.
An audit trail of transactions and database changes is
kept by a _________________ _________________.
A(n) _____________ _____________ is a facility by
which the DBMS refuses to accept any new
transactions.

The _____________________________________ is
a set of commands used to define a database.

The ______________________ technique involves

reprocessing the days transactions against the backup
copy of the database.

Commands used to control a database are part of the

The logical beginning and end of a transaction is called

_________________________________________ .

a ________________ _________________.

______________ ___________________ is a
constraint that specifies that the value of an attribute
in one relation depends upon the presence of that value
as a primary key in the same or other relation.

The process of managing simultaneous operations

against a database so that data integrity is maintained is

To update data in SQL we must inform the DBMS what

______________, _____________, and
_____________ are involved.
In SQL the ____________ and _______________
clauses are required, while the _________ clause is
needed when only certain rows are to be retrieved or
multiple tables are to be joined.
Using aggregate functions will give a ______________
answer.

called ______________ _________________.

Any data that are retrieved by a user for updating must
be _______________ until the update is completed or
aborted.
A(n) ____________________ is an impasse that
results when two or more transactions have locked a
common resource, and each waits for the other to
unlock that resource.
The phases of the two-phase locking protocol are
referred to as the ______________ phase and the
_______________ phase.

Computer Science 3413

Final Exam, Dec. 15, 2010

Name __________________________________
Page 5

MULTIPLE CHOICE: Choose the one alternative that best completes the statement or
answers the question. [15 marks]
Data modeling may be the most important part of the
systems development process because:
A)
data characteristics are important in the design
of programs and other systems components.
B)
the data in a system are generally less complex
than processes, and play a central role in development.
C)
data are less stable than processes.
D)
it is the easiest
Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of a good
business rule?
A)
Declarative
B)
Atomic
C)
Inconsistent
D)
Expressible
An entity type whose existence depends on another
entity type is called a(n) _____ entity.
A)
strong
B)
weak
C)
codependent
D)
variant
A property or characteristic of an entity type that is of
interest to the organization is called a(n):
A)
attribute.
B)
coexisting entity.
C)
relationship.
D)
cross-function.
A persons name, birthday, and social security number
are all examples of :
A)
attributes.
B)
entities.
C)
relationships.
D)
descriptors.
An attribute that can be broken down into smaller parts
is called a(n) _____ attribute.
A)
associative
B)
simple
C)
composite
D)
complex
An attribute that can be calculated from related attribute
values is called a(n) _____ attribute.
A)
simple
B)
composite
C)
multivalued
D)
derived

A relationship between the instances of a single entity

type is called a(n) _____ relationship.
A)
ternary
B)
primary
C)
binary
D)
unary
A(n) _____ specifies the number of instances of one
entity that can be associated with each instance of
another entity.
A)
degree
B)
cardinality constraint
C)
counter constraint
D)
limit
A mutually exclusive relationship is one in which:
A)
an entity instance can participate in many
different relationships.
B)
an entity instance can participate in only one of
several alternative relationships.
C)
an entity instance can not participate in a
relationship with another entity instance.
D)
none of the above.
Database access frequencies are estimated from:
A)
transaction volumes.
B)
user logins.
C)
security violations.
D)
none of the above.
A method for handling missing data is to:
A)
substitute and estimate for the missing data.
B)
track missing data with special reports.
C)
perform sensitivity testing.
D)
all of the above.
Distributing the rows of data into separate files is called:
A)
normalization.
B)
horizontal partitioning.
C)
vertical partitioning.
D)
file allocation.
__________ partitioning distributes the columns of a
table into several separate physical records.
A)
Horizontal
B)
Crossways
C)
Vertical
D)
Final

Computer Science 3413

Final Exam, Dec. 15, 2010

A rule of thumb for choosing indexes is to:

A)
be careful indexing attributes that may be null.
B)
index each primary key of each table.
C)
use an index when there is variety in attribute
values.
D)
all of the above.
A method that speeds query processing by running a
query at the same time against several partitions of a
table using multiprocessors is called:
A)
multiple partition queries.
B)
perpendicular query processing.
C)
parallel query processing.
D)
query optimization.
Which of the following is a component of processing
logic?
A)
Input
B)
Output
C)
Retrieval
D)
Business rules
A(n) _____ is a module of code written in SQL or some
proprietary language to run business rules on a server.
A)
SQL program
B)
select module
C)
select procedure
D)
stored procedure
Which of the following is an advantage of stored
procedures?
A)
Data integrity improves when fewer applications
access the procedure.
B)
The layers get cleaner.
C)
Stored procedures result in fatter clients.
D)
Performance improves for compiled SQL
statements.
Which of the following is true about three-tier
architectures?
A)
Less scalable than two-tier
B)
Increased risk
C)
More technological flexibility
D)
All of the above
Which of the following is true of moving to client/server
environments?
A)
Functionality must be delivered all at once.
B)
There are no hidden costs.
C)
Services can be placed appropriately.
D)
None of the above.

Name __________________________________
Page 6
In order to establish client/server security:
A)
Network security must be established
B)
Biometric authentication must be used
C)
Server security must be established
D)
Both A and C
High quality data are data that are
A)
Accurate
B)
Consistent
C)
Available in a timely fashion
D)
All of the above
One characteristic of quality data which pertains to the
expectation for the time between when data are expected
and when they are available for use is:
A)
Currency
B)
Consistency
C)
Referential Integrity
D)
Timeliness
A person assigned the responsibility of ensuring data
quality in the organization is called a(n):
A)
Data steward
B)
Data manager
C)
Database administrator
D)
Business analyst
When creating a sound data model, entity types should
represent and be named after:
A)
The role that the entity plays in a context
B)
The underlying object
C)
Random events
D)
Actors
The major advantage of data propagation is:
A)
Real-time cascading of data changes throughout
the organization.
B)
Duplication of non-redundant data
C)
The ability to have trickle-feeds
D)
None of the above
An approach to filling a data warehouse that employs
bulk rewriting of the target data periodically is called:
A)
dump mode.
B)
overwrite mode.
C)
refresh mode.
D)
update mode.
Data may be loaded from the staging area into the
warehouse by following:
A)
SQL Commands (Insert/Update)
B)
Special load utilities
C)
Custom-written routines
D)
All of the above

Computer Science 3413

Final Exam, Dec. 15, 2010

Name __________________________________
Page 7

Answer the following questions in your answer booklets

1.

(Based on Pg. 197 #13 ) [ 15 marks ]

Security at Lakehead U maintains a list of parking tickets issued to vehicles parked illegally on campus. The
following table shows a portion of this list for Sept.-Nov. 2010. Attribute names are abbreviated to conserve space.
a.
Convert this table to first normal form by entering appropriate data into the table.
b.
What are the functional dependencies in this 1NF relation?
c.
What are the determinants in this 1NF relation?
d.
Draw a dependency diagram that shows all the functional dependencies in this 1NF relation, based on the
sample data shown.
e.
Give an example of two anomalies that can result in using this 1NF relation.
f.
Develop a set of relations in 3NF containing the same information as your 1NF table. Include in your set a
new column with the heading Violation which contains the reason for each ticket. Values in this column are: expired
parking meter (ticket code 1), no parking permit (ticket code 2) and handicap violation (ticket code 3).
g.
Draw an E-R diagram with the appropriate cardinality notations.
h.
Explain why the anomalies you listed in e. no longer are possible.
i.
Explain two problems with this design and how it can be repaired.

2.

Based on Pine Valley Furniture database, page 96 [25 marks]

For these SQL commands, DO NOT use INNER JOIN or NATURAL JOIN ala MSAccess, but rather express these
join conditions as a part of the WHERE clause.
a.
Write an SQL command to display the order number, customer number, order date, and items ordered
(Product ID and Description) for orders numbered 1101 to 1122 inclusive.
b.
List, in alphabetical order, the names of all employees (managers) who are now supervising people with skill
ID BS12; List each managers name only once, even if that manager supervises several people with this skill.
c.
Redo b, but this time include the managers themselves if they have skill BS12, even though none of the
employees they manage has skill BS12
d
Write an SQL query to produce a list of all products (Product ID and Description), and the number of times
each product has been ordered in the last 6 months.(todaysDate() - order.OrderDate <=183)
e.
Display the pairs of names of customers who live in the same zip code. Make sure that each pair of such
customers is listed only once, and customers who are the only one in a zip code are not listed at all.

Fill in the blanks suggestions.

3NF
action assertion
application programs
authorization rules
base table
biometric device
Boyce-Codd Normal Form
business rule
CASCADE
Cascading Style sheets or CSS
checkpoint facility
columns
Common Gateway Interface or CGI
concurrency control
constraint
data control language or DCL
data definition language or DDL
data independence
data manipulation language or DML
data warehouse
data warehouse administration
database administration
deadlock
derivation
disjointness constraint
DISTINCT
encryption
enterprise database
Extensible Markup Language or XML

features
file description
files
FROM
growing; shrinking
industry specific
journalizing facility
locked
logically related
metadata
one-row
ORDER BY
personal
redundancy
referential integrity
relation
restore/rerun
rows
SELECT
share
SORT BY
subtype
supertype
transaction boundary
true
universal
values
WHERE