Difficulty: Easy
Correct Answer: Problem oriented language that allows programmers to describe solutions in terms close to the problem domain rather than machine details
Explanation:
Introduction / Context:
Programming languages can be grouped by the level of abstraction they provide. Low level languages like machine code and assembly are closely tied to hardware details. High level languages provide constructs that are closer to human thinking and problem description. Many textbooks describe high level languages as problem oriented languages because they free programmers from machine specific details and let them focus on solving the underlying problem.
Given Data / Assumptions:
Concept / Approach:
High level languages are designed so that programming statements map naturally onto problem domain concepts. For instance, loops, conditionals, and functions can be expressed in ways that resemble structured reasoning about a task, rather than the exact sequence of machine instructions. Specific high level languages may be business oriented or mathematically oriented, but the broader category is problem oriented, meaning that they aim to express solutions to problems in a convenient way. Assemblers and machine code, by contrast, are considered machine oriented and are tightly bound to processor architecture.
Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Recognize that business oriented and mathematically oriented languages are subcategories or application specific uses of high level languages.Step 2: Identify that the more general term used for high level languages is problem oriented, because they let programmers focus on the logic of the problem.Step 3: Understand that not every high level language is exclusively business oriented or exclusively mathematical.Step 4: Therefore, the most accurate single description is problem oriented language.Step 5: Choose the option that states this explicitly.
Verification / Alternative check:
Many introductory computer science books classify languages into machine oriented and problem oriented groups. Machine oriented languages include machine code and assembly. Problem oriented languages include general purpose and domain specific languages that help describe solutions more naturally. COBOL is often described as business oriented, and Fortran as mathematically oriented, yet both are also problem oriented because they address particular kinds of problems rather than machine specifics. This supports the view that problem oriented language is the fundamental label for high level languages.
Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option A: Business oriented language describes languages such as COBOL but does not cover all high level languages, and the question asks for the general term.Option B: Mathematically oriented language fits languages like Fortran but again is too narrow as a general label.Option D: All of the above is misleading because high level languages are not always both business and mathematically oriented at the same time; they are all problem oriented in a broader sense.
Common Pitfalls:
A common confusion arises when learners mix up specific application areas with general abstraction levels. It is important to distinguish whether the question is about what problems a language targets or about how high level it is relative to the machine. Remembering that high level languages are mainly problem oriented helps to answer similar questions quickly.
Final Answer:
The correct answer is Problem oriented language that allows programmers to describe solutions in terms close to the problem domain rather than machine details.
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