A computer byte consists of 8 bits, each bit being either a 0 or a 1. If characters are represented using a code that uses 2 bytes for each character, how many characters can be represented ?
A)128
B) 100
C) 65,536
D) 512
E) 32

Question

A computer byte consists of 8 bits, each bit being either a 0 or a 1. If characters are represented using a code that uses 2 bytes for each character, how many characters can be represented  ?
A)128
B) 100
C) 65,536
D) 512
E) 32

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

One byte consists of 8 bits, therefore 2 bytes represent 2 x 8 = 16 bits.

Each bit can represent either 0 or 1. Therefore, the number of possible combinations of 16 bits is 2^16.

Hence, the number of characters that can be represented is 2^16 = 65,536.

Therefore, the correct answer is C.

A Computer Byte Consists of 8 Bits, Each Bit Being