A program is needed to process a data set of exam scores and find the number of students who scored 90 or above. Which combination of algorithmic components is most appropriate for this task?
- A single conditional statement to check if the first score in the data set is 90 or above.
- A loop to iterate through each score and a counter variable initialized to zero. (correct answer)
- Two separate loops: one to find the maximum score and one to find the minimum score.
- A method call to a sorting algorithm to arrange all of the scores in ascending order.
Explanation: The standard algorithm for this task requires iterating through all scores (using a loop) and keeping a count of how many meet the criterion (using a counter variable). Checking only the first score is incomplete. Finding the min/max or sorting the data are unnecessary operations for solving this specific problem.