Question

Consider the following code segment.

int sum = 0;
int k = 1;
while (sum < 12 || k < 4)
sum += k;
System.out.println(sum);

What is printed as a result of executing the code segment?

Answer 1

The Java code snippet executes a while loop that adds 1 to a sum variable until it reaches or exceeds the value of 12. The loop terminates after the sum reaches 12 and the final value of 12 is printed to the console.

Step-by-step explanation:

The code provided is a Java program snippet that initializes a variable sum to 0 and a variable k to 1. It then enters a while loop that continues to run as long as the sum is less than 12 or k is less than 4. During each iteration of the loop, the program adds the current value of k to the sum, but the value of k never changes - it is always 1. Hence, the loop will run indefinitely, or until the sum reaches a value of 12 or more.

However, since k is always 1, it does not satisfy the second condition of the loop (k < 4) when sum is equal to or exceeds 12. As a result, the loop will terminate once sum is 12 or greater.

The iterations of the loop in sequence will be as follows:

1. sum = 0 + 1 = 1 (k remains 1)
2. sum = 1 + 1 = 2 (k remains 1)
3. sum = 2 + 1 = 3 (k remains 1)
4. sum = 3 + 1 = 4 (k remains 1)
5. sum = 4 + 1 = 5 (k remains 1)
6. sum = 5 + 1 = 6 (k remains 1)
7. sum = 6 + 1 = 7 (k remains 1)
8. sum = 7 + 1 = 8 (k remains 1)
9. sum = 8 + 1 = 9 (k remains 1)
10. sum = 9 + 1 = 10 (k remains 1)
11. sum = 10 + 1 = 11 (k remains 1)
12. sum = 11 + 1 = 12 (k remains 1)

After the 12th iteration, the value of sum is now 12, so the while loop condition is no longer satisfied, and the loop terminates. Finally, the program prints out the final value of the sum, which is 12.

Therefore, the output printed to the console is:

12