Which geometrical figure represents the Input/Output operation of an algorithm?
2023
Which geometrical figure represents the Input/Output operation of an algorithm?
Answer: D. Parallelogram — Concept — A flowchart is the diagrammatic form of an algorithm, and in it the shape of a box, not the text written inside it, declares what class of step that…
- A.
Diagonal
- B.
Circle
- C.
Rectangle
- D.
Parallelogram
- E.
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Correct answer: D
Concept — A flowchart is the diagrammatic form of an algorithm, and in it the shape of a box, not the text written inside it, declares what class of step that box is. The standard symbol set (ANSI X3.5, carried into ISO 5807) fixes exactly one shape per class of step, so a reader can classify every box in a chart before reading a single word inside it.
Application — An input/output step is one that moves data across the boundary of the algorithm: taking in a value supplied from outside (READ n, scanf) or sending a result outward (PRINT sum, printf). In the standard set this class of step is drawn as a parallelogram, formally called the data symbol. So READ n and PRINT sum are both written inside a parallelogram, while the arithmetic between them is not.
Cross-check — Every other standard figure already carries a different job, so no second shape is free to take the input/output role:
Figure | Role it carries in a flowchart |
|---|---|
Oval (terminator) | Start and Stop of the algorithm |
Parallelogram | Input / Output — take in a value, send out a result |
Rectangle | Process — a computation or an assignment |
Diamond | Decision — a test that splits the flow into branches |
Circle | Connector — rejoins a flow line continued elsewhere |
Arrowed line (flow line) | Direction in which control moves |
Result — The input/output operation of an algorithm is represented by the parallelogram.