Types of Data - Module One Lesson Two

Vocabulary flashcards covering data types, data classification, and levels of measurement from the lecture notes.

Taxonomic ranks in biology

Hierarchy used to classify organisms from broad to specific: Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genera, Species; example Animalia, Chordata, Mammalia, Cetacea, Delphinidae, Tursiops, T. Turncatus.

Gymnosperms

Plants that, in the notes, have no flowers.

Angiosperms

Plants that MAKE SEEDS in flowers; have flowers.

Qualitative data (Categorical)

Data consisting of labels or descriptions using words/phrases; not typically used in calculations.

Quantitative data

Counts or measurements; numeric values suitable for calculations.

Discrete data

Quantitative data that counts whole units; no fractions or decimals.

Continuous data

Quantitative data from measurement; can involve fractions/decimals; values between any two numbers are possible.

Nominal data

Qualitative data with no inherent order; categories are mutually exclusive and nonoverlapping; not used in math.

Ordinal data

Qualitative data with order (rankings); exact differences between ranks do not exist; not typically used in arithmetic.

Interval data

Quantitative data with order and meaningful differences; no true zero; differences are meaningful; examples: temperature, calendar dates, IQ scores.

Ratio data

Quantitative data with order and meaningful differences; true zero; allows addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division; examples: height, salary, exam scores.

Level of Measurement

Classification of data by scale into nominal, ordinal, interval, and ratio; higher levels enable more statistical analyses.

Data

The set of actual responses or values collected for a variable in a study.

Type classification

Classification of data by qualitative vs quantitative.

Mutually exclusive groups

Groups that do not overlap; each observation fits one group only.

Nonoverlapping exhaustive groups

Groups that cover all possibilities and do not overlap; together they include every observation.

True zero

Zero that indicates absence of the quantity; present in ratio data.

Interval data example

Temperature (0 does not mean no heat); also includes calendar dates and IQ scores.

Ratio data example

Height, salary, exam scores; all arithmetic operations are meaningful because zero means absence.

Nominal data examples

Examples include True/False, political affiliation, and ZIP codes.