Variable creation and assignment in MATLAB - Practice Problems & Coding Challenges

Challenge - 5 Problems

❓ Predict Output

intermediate

What is the output of this variable assignment?

Consider the following MATLAB code snippet. What will be the value of result after execution?

MATLAB

a = 5;
b = 3;
result = a + b * 2;

A 11

B 16

C 13

D 10

💡 Hint

Remember the order of operations: multiplication before addition.

In MATLAB, multiplication happens before addition. So b * 2 = 6, then a + 6 = 11.

❓ Predict Output

intermediate

What is the value of variable x after this code?

Look at this MATLAB code. What is the value stored in x?

MATLAB

x = 10;
x = x + 5;
x = x - 3;

A 8

B 12

C 15

D 10

💡 Hint

Follow each assignment step carefully.

x starts at 10, then 10 + 5 = 15, then 15 - 3 = 12.

🔧 Debug

advanced

Identify the error in this variable assignment

This MATLAB code tries to assign a value but causes an error. What is the error?

MATLAB

1var = 10;

A RuntimeError: Variable not defined

B TypeError: Cannot assign integer to variable

C SyntaxError: Variable names cannot start with a number

D No error, code runs fine

💡 Hint

Variable names must start with a letter in MATLAB.

MATLAB variable names must begin with a letter, not a number.

❓ Predict Output

advanced

What is the output of this vector assignment?

What is the value of v after running this MATLAB code?

MATLAB

v = [1, 2, 3];
v(2) = 10;

A [1, 10, 3]

B [10, 2, 3]

C [1, 2, 10]

D [1, 2, 3, 10]

💡 Hint

Indexing in MATLAB starts at 1.

The second element of vector v is replaced by 10, so v becomes [1, 10, 3].

🧠 Conceptual

expert

How many variables are created after this code runs?

Consider this MATLAB code snippet. How many distinct variables exist in the workspace after execution?

MATLAB

a = 5;
b = a;
a = 10;
c = b + a;

A 2

B 4

C 1

D 3

💡 Hint

Count each unique variable name assigned.

Variables a, b, and c exist. b copies a's value before a changes.