What is Data?

Learning Objectives Define 'encoding' and explain why computers need it to understand data. Explain that all data, like letters and pictures, is stored by computers as numbers. Convert single-digit decimal numbers (0-9) into 4-bit binary numbers. Use a simple encoding scheme (e.g., A=1, B=2) to encode and decode short words. Describe how a simple black and white image can be represented using binary (0 for white, 1 for black). Identify that different encoding systems can exist for the same type of information. Ever wanted to send a secret message that only a computer could read? 🤫 Let's learn the secret language of computers! In this lesson, we'll discover how computers turn everything we see and use—like letters, numbers, and pictures—into a special co...

TermDefinitionExample DataAny information that is collected, stored, and used by a computer.Your name, your age, the letters in a word, or the score in a video game. EncodingThe process of changing information from one form into a special code that a computer can understand.Changing the letter 'A' into the number 1, or the letter 'B' into the number 2. DecodingThe process of changing information from a special code back into its original, understandable form.Seeing the number 1 and knowing it means the letter 'A'. BinaryA way of representing information using only two symbols: 0 and 1. It is the main language of computers.The number 5 that we use every day is written as 0101 in binary. BitThe smallest piece of data a computer can store. It can only be a 0 or...

Simple Alphabet Encoding Assign a unique number to each letter of the alphabet (e.g., A=1, B=2, C=3, ...). Use this pattern to turn words into a list of numbers. To decode a message, you look up the number in your list and find the matching letter. Simple Image Encoding Create a grid for the image. Use 0 for a white pixel and 1 for a black pixel. Read the numbers from left to right, top to bottom. This is how computers can store simple black and white pictures. Each 0 or 1 tells the computer whether to turn a pixel 'off' (white) or 'on' (black). Decimal to 4-Bit Binary Use the place values 8, 4, 2, 1. To make a number, put a '1' in the places you need to add up to your number, and a '0' in the places you don't need. This i...