Scope of ASCII: Does the ASCII code represent all possible alphanumeric data (across languages and symbol sets), or is it limited to a specific basic set?

Introduction / Context:
ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange) is a 7-bit character code defining 128 values: control characters, digits, uppercase and lowercase English letters, and basic punctuation. It is a foundational code in computing, but it does not represent every possible alphanumeric symbol or the characters of all languages. This question challenges the overbroad claim that ASCII encodes “all alphanumeric data.”

Given Data / Assumptions:

• ASCII defines 7-bit codes; many systems store them in 8-bit bytes with the MSB set to 0.
• Extended “ASCII” byte values (128–255) are not standardized globally and vary by code page.
• Modern global text interchange relies on Unicode/UTF encodings.

Concept / Approach:
ASCII reliably represents English A–Z/a–z, digits 0–9, and basic symbols. It cannot represent accented letters, non-Latin scripts, or the vast array of symbols required worldwide. Therefore, while ASCII is a “special code” historically, its scope is limited and not universal.

Step-by-Step Solution:

Verification / Alternative check:
Check that ASCII lacks letters like é, ñ, and non-Latin scripts (Greek, Cyrillic, Devanagari, Han). Unicode was introduced to provide a universal mapping, proving ASCII’s limitations.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:

Common Pitfalls:
Confusing vendor-specific “extended ASCII” code pages with a single global standard; such pages are mutually incompatible.

Final Answer:
Incorrect — ASCII covers a basic English alphanumeric set, not “all” alphanumeric data