These are original Marlbridge practice questions, not past exam questions. All innovations, organisations and passages are fictional and were written by Marlbridge. The rubrics are a suggested Marlbridge rubric, not an official scoring guideline. Answers should be balanced and based on the scenario. No calculator is needed.
Question 1 (multiple choice · foundation)
A fictional app built to help hikers share trail conditions is also used by park rangers to plan repairs. This is best described as
- (A) a use beyond the creators’ original intention
- (B) a syntax error
- (C) an example of lossy compression
- (D) a failure of fault tolerance
Answer and explanation
Answer: (A). The app is being used in a way its creators did not originally intend; here the effect is beneficial.
- (B), (C) and (D) are unrelated ideas.
Question 2 (multiple choice · foundation)
Which statement about effects of computing innovations is correct?
- (A) Every effect is anticipated by the developers.
- (B) An effect can be viewed as beneficial by some people and harmful by others.
- (C) Unintended effects are always harmful.
- (D) An innovation has only one effect.
Answer and explanation
Answer: (B).
- (A) not every effect is anticipated.
- (C) unintended effects can be beneficial.
- (D) innovations have many effects.
Question 3 (multiple choice · core)
A fictional city installs a sensor system that adjusts traffic lights to reduce waiting times. Delivery drivers find journeys faster; residents next to a quiet road find it now carries much more traffic. Which statement best describes this?
- (A) The system has only beneficial effects.
- (B) The system has only harmful effects.
- (C) The same system has effects that some people view as beneficial and others as harmful.
- (D) The effects are not caused by the system.
Answer and explanation
Answer: (C). Different groups experience different effects of the same system.
- (A) and (B) each ignore one of the groups.
- (D) the effects arise from the changed traffic lights.
Question 4 (multiple choice · core)
A fictional video app becomes popular overnight and is used by millions within a week. A flaw in how it handles uploads, unnoticed in testing with 50 users, now causes thousands of crashes. Which statement best explains why the impact is greater than the developers expected?
- (A) Rapid sharing and a very large number of users can magnify an effect beyond the programmer’s control.
- (B) The flaw was a syntax error.
- (C) The developers intended the crashes.
- (D) Crashes only happen with more than a million users.
Answer and explanation
Answer: (A).
- (B) a flaw that appears at scale is not a syntax error.
- (C) there is no sign of intention.
- (D) the number is invented.
Question 5 (multiple choice, select two · core)
Which two statements describe what responsible programmers do?
- (A) They try to consider unintended ways their innovation could be used and the effects of those uses.
- (B) They believe they can consider every possible use.
- (C) They talk with a range of users and add safeguards where they see risk.
- (D) They avoid testing, so no problems are found.
Answer and explanation
Answer: (A) and (C).
- (B) it is not possible to consider all uses.
- (D) testing is a safeguard, not something to avoid.
Question 6 (multiple choice · stretch)
Read this short passage written by Marlbridge.
“HealthTrack is a fictional wristband that counts steps and heart rate. It was designed to help users stay active. A school discovers the wristbands can show how long students sit still, and uses the data to adjust lesson breaks. Some parents say the school should not be using the data; others say the new breaks help children concentrate.”
Which statement is best supported by the passage?
- (A) The school’s use is an example of a use beyond the intended purpose with effects that different people view differently.
- (B) The wristband has no effects other than counting steps.
- (C) The parents all agree about the effects.
- (D) The developers must have intended the school’s use.
Answer and explanation
Answer: (A). The wristband was designed for personal activity; the school uses the data for lesson breaks, and parents disagree.
- (B) the passage describes more effects.
- (C) the passage says opinions differ.
- (D) the passage gives no evidence of that intention.
Question 7 (multiple choice · stretch)
A fictional online map service was created so people could find shops. Researchers now use its anonymous, combined location counts to study how crowds move at festivals and to plan safer exits. Which pair describes this use?
- (A) An intended use that is only harmful
- (B) An unintended use that has a beneficial effect, and that also raises a privacy question about collecting location data
- (C) An unintended use that has no possible benefit or harm
- (D) A syntax error that causes crowds
Answer and explanation
Answer: (B). The new use is unintended and beneficial; location data raise privacy questions.
- (A) the use is not intended and the description is not only harmful.
- (C) the use has a clear benefit.
- (D) unrelated.
Question 8 (constructed response · core)
A fictional company launches a messaging app for friends and families. Within a year, many shops use it to message customers about orders.
(a) Explain why this is a use beyond the intended purpose. (1 point)
(b) Describe one beneficial effect and one harmful effect of this new use. (2 points)
(c) Describe one thing the developers could do in response. (1 point)
Answer and explanation
Suggested Marlbridge rubric (4 points).
| Point | Award when the response… |
|---|---|
| 1 | says the app was meant for friends and families, not business messages to customers |
| 2 | gives a beneficial effect (customers get fast order updates; small shops save cost) |
| 3 | gives a harmful effect (customers receive unwanted messages; personal and business messages mix; privacy of phone numbers) |
| 4 | gives a plausible response (add controls for business messages, let users block senders, add a separate business feature) |
Sample response. (a) It was designed for personal conversation, and now it is also used for business. (b) Beneficial: customers get quick updates. Harmful: customers may receive unwanted advertising and their phone numbers may be shared. (c) Add a setting so users can block business messages.
Question 9 (constructed response · core)
A fictional supermarket chain introduces self-checkout machines.
(a) Describe one effect that is beneficial for some people. (1 point)
(b) Describe one effect that is harmful for other people. (1 point)
(c) Explain how the same effect, such as fewer staff at the till, can be viewed both ways. (2 points)
Answer and explanation
Suggested Marlbridge rubric (4 points).
| Point | Award when the response… |
|---|---|
| 1 | names a benefit for a named group (shorter queues for shoppers) |
| 2 | names a harm for a named group (cashiers may lose hours or jobs; some shoppers find the machines hard to use) |
| 3 | identifies a single effect (fewer staff at tills) |
| 4 | explains how different groups view it differently (cost saving for the company, loss of work for staff) |
Sample response. (a) Shoppers with few items can pay faster. (b) Cashiers may have fewer shifts. (c) Fewer staff at the tills saves the company money, but it reduces work for cashiers, so one effect is viewed both ways.
Question 10 (constructed response · stretch)
A fictional city launches a free app that lets residents report broken streetlights. Thousands of reports arrive in the first month. The city’s engineers use the location data from the reports to decide where to install new cameras for safety.
(a) Identify the original purpose and the new use. (2 points)
(b) Explain one benefit and one concern of the new use. (2 points)
(c) Suggest one step that could help the city act responsibly. (1 point)
Answer and explanation
Suggested Marlbridge rubric (5 points).
| Point | Award when the response… |
|---|---|
| 1 | gives the original purpose (to report broken streetlights) |
| 2 | gives the new use (to plan camera installation) |
| 3 | gives a benefit (safety planning is based on real data about where residents are) |
| 4 | gives a concern (residents who reported did not agree to this use; the data could be used for surveillance; reports may come mostly from some districts) |
| 5 | suggests a step (tell residents about the new use, ask for consent, limit who can see the location data, remove personal details) |
Sample response. (a) The app was meant for reporting broken lights; the city now also uses it to plan cameras. (b) Benefit: cameras can go where residents have raised concerns. Concern: residents did not agree to this new use of their data. (c) The city should publish how the data are used and let residents opt out.
How did you do?
Questions 1 to 7 are multiple choice; 8 to 10 are written. If you lost marks in the written questions, check that you named the group affected and gave a balanced answer. Re-read “A method for analysing an innovation” in the study guide if needed, then use the checklist.