Glossary of terms Flashcards
A/B Testing
The process of testing two variations of the same web page to determine which page is more successful at attracting user traffic and generating revenue
Access Control
Features such as password protection, user permissions, and encryption that are used to protect a spreadsheet
Accuracy
The degree to which the data conforms to the actual entity being measured or described
Action-oriented questions
A question whose answers lead to change
Administrative metadata
Metadata that indicates the technical source of a digital asset
Agenda
A list of scheduled appointments
Algorithm
A process or set of rules followed for a specific task
Analytical skills
Qualities and characteristics associated with using facts to solve problems
Attribute
A characteristic or quality of data used to label a column in a table.
Audio file
Digitized audio storage usually in an MP3, AAC, or other compressed format
AVERAGE
A spreadsheet function that returns an average of the values from a selected range
Bad data source
A data source that is not reliable, original, comprehensive, current, and cited (ROCCC)
Bias
A conscious or subconscious preference in favor of or against a person, group of people, or a thing
Big data
Large, complex datasets typically involving long periods of time, which enable data analysts to address far-reaching business problems
Boolean data
A data type with only two possible values, usually true or false
Borders
Lines that can be added around two or more cells on a spreadsheet
Business task
The question or problem data analysis resolves for a business
CASE
A SQL statement that returns records that meet conditions by including an if/then statement in a query
CAST
A SQL function that converts data from one datatype to another
Cell reference
A cell or a range of cells in a worksheet typically used in formulas and functions
Changelog
A file containing a chronologically ordered list of modifications made to a project
Clean data
Data that is complete, correct, and relevant to the problem being solved
Cloud
A place to keep data online, rather than a computer hard drive.
COALESCE
A SQL function that returns non-null values in a list
Compatibility
How well two or more datasets are able to work together
Completeness
The degree to which the data contains all desired components or measures
CONCAT
A SQL function that adds strings together to create new text strings that can be used as unique keys
CONCATENATE
A spreadsheet function that joins together two or more text strings
Conditional formatting
A spreadsheet tool that changes how cells appear when values meet specific conditions
Confidence interval
A range of values that conveys how likely a statistical estimate reflects the population
Confidence level
The probability that a sample size accurately reflects the greater population
Confirmation bias
The tendency to search for or interpret information in a way that confirms pre-existing beliefs
Consent
The aspect of data ethics that presumes an individual’s right to know how and why their personal data will be used before agreeing to provide it
Consistency
The degree to which data is repeatable from a different point of entry or collection
Context
The condition in which something exists or happens
Continuous data
Data that is measured and can have almost any numeric value
Cookie
A small file stored on a computer that contains information about its users
COUNT
A spreadsheet function that counts the number of cells in a range that meet specific criteria
COUNTIF
A spreadsheet function that returns the number of cells that match a specified value
Cross-field validation
A process that ensures certain conditions for multiple data fields are satisfied
CSV (comma-separated values) file
A delimited text file that users a comma to separate values
Currency
The aspect of data ethics that presumes individuals should be aware of financial transactions resulting from the use of their personal data and the scale of those transactions
Dashboard
A tool that monitors live, incoming data
Data
A collection of facts
Data analysis
The collection, transformation, and organization of data in order to draw conclusions make predictions, and drive informed decision-making.
Data analysis process
The six phases of ask, prepare, process, analyze, share, and act whose purpose is to gain insights that drive informed decision-making
Data analyst
Someone who collects transforms, and organizes data in order to drive informed decision-making
Data analytics
The science of data
Data anonymization
The process of protecting people’s private or sensitive data by eliminating identifying information
Data bias
When a preference in favor of or against a person, group of people or thing systematically skews data analysis results in a certain direction
Data constraints
The criteria that determine whether a piece of data is clean and valid
Data design
How information is organized
Data-driven decision-making
Using facts to guide business strategy.
Data ecosystem
The various elements that interact with one another in order to produce, manage, store, organize, analyze, and share data
Data element
A piece of information in a dataset
Data engineer
A professional who transforms data into a useful format for analysis and gives it a reliable infrastructure
Data ethics
Well-founded standards of right and wrong that dictate how data is collected, shared, and used
Data governance
A process for ensuring the formal management of a company’s data assets
Data-inspired decision-making
The process of exploring different data sources to find out what they have in common
Data integrity
The accuracy, completeness, consistency, and trustworthiness of data throughout its life cycle
Data interoperability
A key factor leading to the successful use of open data among companies and governments
Data life cycle
The sequence of stages that data experiences, which include plan, capture, manage, analyze, archive, and destroy
Data manipulation
The process of changing data to make it more organized and easier to read
Data mapping
The process of matching fields from one data source to another
Data merging
The process of combining two or more datasets into a single dataset
Data model
A tool for organizing data elements and how they relate to one another
Data privacy
Preserving a data subject’s information any time a data transaction occurs
Data range
Numerical values that fall between predefined maximum and minimum values
Data replication
The process of storing data in multiple locations
Data science
A field of study that uses raw data to create new ways of modeling and understanding the unknown
Data security
Protecting data from unauthorized access or corruption by adopting safety measures
Data strategy
The management of the people, processes, and tools used in data analysis
Data transfer
The process of copying data from a storage device to computer memory or from one computer to another
Data type
An attribute that describes a piece of data based on its values, its programming language, or the operations it can perform
Data validation
A tool for checking the accuracy and quality of data
Data visualization
The graphical representation of data
Data warehousing specialist
A professional who develops processes and procedures to effectively store and organize data
Database
A collection of data stored in a computer system
Dataset
A collection of data that can be manipulated or analyzed as one unit
DATEIF
A spreadsheet function that calculates the number of days, months, or years between two dates
Delimiter
A character that indicates the beginning or end of a data item
Descriptive metadata
Metadata that describes a piece of data and can be used to identify it at a later point in time
Digital photo
An electronic or computer-based image usually in BMP or JPG format
Dirty data
Data that is incomplete, incorrect, or irrelevant to the problem to be solved
Discrete data
Data that is counted and has a limited number of values
DISTINCT
A keyword that is added to a SQL SELECT statement to retrieve only non-duplicate entries
Duplicate data
Any record that inadvertently shares data with another record
Equation
A calculation of data that involves addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division (also called math expression)
Estimated response rate
The average number of people who typically complete a survey
Ethics
Well-founded standards of right and wrong that prescribe what humans ought to do, usually in terms of rights, obligations, benefits to society, fairness, or specific virtues
Experimenter bias
The tendency for different people to observe things differently (also called observer bias)
External data
Data that lives, and is generated, outside of an organization
Fairness
A quality of data that does not create or reinforce bias
Field
A single piece of information from a row or column of a spreadsheet; in a data table, typically a column in the table
Field length
A tool for determining how many characters can be keyed into a spreadsheet field
Fill handle
A box in the lower-right-hand corner of a selected spreadsheet cell that can be dragged through neighboring cells in order to continue an instruction
Filtering
The process of showing only the data that meets specified criteria while hiding the rest
Find and replace
A tool that finds a specified search term and replaces it with something else
First-party-data
Data collected by an individual or group using their own resources
Float
A number that contains a decimal
Foreign key
A field within a database table that is a primary key in another table (Refer to primary key)
Formula
A set of instructions used to perform a calculation using the data in a spreadsheet
FROM
The section of a query that indicates where the selected data comes from
Function
A preset command that automatically performs a specified process or task using the data in a spreadsheet
Gap analysis
A method for examining and evaluating the current state of a process in order to identify opportunities for improvement in the future.
General Data Protection Regulation of the European Union (GDPR)
Policy-making body in the European Union created to help protect people and their data
Geolocation
The geographical location of a person or device by means of digital information
Good data source
A data source that is reliable, original, comprehensive, current, and cited (ROCCC)
Header
The first row in a spreadsheet that labels the type of data in each column
Hypothesis testing
A process to determine if a survey or experiment has meaningful results
Incomplete data
Data that is missing important fields
Inconsistent data
Data that uses different formats to represent the same thing
Incorrect/inaccurate data
Data that is complete but inaccurate
Internal data
Data that lives within a company’s own systems
Interpretation bias
The tendency to interpret ambiguous situations in a positive or negative way
Leading question
A question that steers people towards a certain response
LEFT
A function that returns a set number of characters from the left side of a text string
LEN
A function that returns the length of a text string by counting the number of characters it contains
Length
The number of characters in a text string
Long data
A dataset in which each row is a one-time point per subject, so each subject has data in multiple rows
Mandatory
A data value that cannot be left blank or empty
Margin of error
The maximum amount that the sample results are expected to differ from those of the actual population
Math expression
A calculation that involves addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division (also called an equation)
MAX
A spreadsheet function that returns the largest numeric value from a range of cells
Measurable question
A question whose answers can be quantified and assessed
Mentor
Someone who shares knowledge, skills, and experience to help another grow both professionally and personally
Merger
An agreement that unites two organizations into a single new one
Metadata
Data about data
Metadata repository
A database created to store metadata
Metric
A single, quantifiable type of data that is used for measurement
Metric goal
A measurable goal set by a company and evaluated using metrics
MID
A function that returns a segment from the middle of a text string
MIN
A spreadsheet function that returns the smallest numeric value from a range of cells
Naming conventions
Consistent guidelines that describe the content, creation date, and version of a file in its name
Networking
Building relationships by meeting people both in-person and online
Nominal data
A type of qualitative data that is categorized without a set order
Normalized database
A database in which only related data is stored in each table
Notebook
An interactive, editable programming environment for creating data reports and showcasing data skills
Null
An indication that a value does not exist in a dataset
Observation
The attributes that describe a piece of data contained in a row of a table.
Observer bias
The tendency for different people to observe things differently (also called experimenter bias)
Open data
Data that is available to the public
Openness
The aspect of data ethics that promotes the free access, usage, and sharing of data
Operator
A symbol that names the operation or calculation to be performed
Order of operations
Using parentheses to group together spreadsheet values in order to clarify the order in which operations should be performed.
Ordinal data
Qualitative data with a set order or scale
Outdated data
Any data that has been superseded by newer and more accurate information
Ownership
The aspect of data ethics that presumes individuals own the raw data they provide and have primary control over its usage, processing, and sharing
Pivot chart
A chart created from the fields in a pivot table
Pivot table
A data summarization tool used to sort, reorganize, group, count, total, or average data
Pixel
In digital imaging, a small area of illumination on a display screen that, when combined with other adjacent areas, forms a digital image
Population
In data analytics, all possible data values in a dataset
Primary key
An identifier in a database that references a column in which each value is unique (Refer to foreign key)
Problem domain
The area of analysis that encompasses every activity affecting or affected by a problem.
Problem types
The various problems that data analysts encounter, including categorizing things, discovering connections, finding patterns, identifying themes, making predictions, and spotting something unusual.
Qualitative data
A subjective and explanatory measure of a quality or characteristic
Quantitative data
A specific and objective measure, such as a number, quantity, or range
Query
A request for data or information from a database
Query language
A computer programming language used to communicate with a database
Random sampling
A way of selecting a sample from a population so that every possible type of the sample has an equal chance of being chosen
Range
A collection of two or more cells in a spreadsheet
Record
A collection of related data in a data table, usually synonymous with row
Redundancy
When the same piece of data is stored in two or more places
Reframing
Restating a problem or challenge, then redirecting it toward a potential resolution
Regular expression (RegEx)
A rule that says the values in a table must match a prescribed pattern
Relational database
A database that contains a series of tables that can be connected to form relationships
Relevant question
A question that has significance to the problem to be solved.
Analytical Thinking
The process of identifying and defining a problem, then solving it by using data in an organized, step-by-step manner.
Remove duplicates
A spreadsheet tool that automatically searches for and eliminates duplicate entries from a spreadsheet
Report
A static collection of data periodically given to stakeholders
Return on investment (ROI)
A formula that uses metrics of investment and profit to evaluate the success of an investment
Revenue
The total amount of income generated by the sale of goods or services
RIGHT
A function that returns a set number of characters from the right side of a text string
Root cause
The reason why a problem occurs
Sample
In data analytics, a segment of a population that is representative of the entire population
Sampling bias
Overrepresenting or underrepresenting certain members of a population as a result of working with a sample that is not representative of the population as a whole
Schema
A way of describing how something, such as data, is organized
Scope of work (SOW)
An agreed-upon outline of the tasks to be performed during a project
Second-party data
Data collected by a group directly from its audience and then sold
SELECT
The section of a query that indicates the subset of a dataset
Small data
Small, specific data points typically involving a short period of time, which are useful for making day-to-day decisions
SMART methodology
A tool for determining a question’s effectiveness based on whether it is specific, measurable, action-oriented, relevant, and time-bound
Social media
Websites and applications through which users create and share content or participate in social networking
Soft skills
Nontechnical traits and behaviors that relate to how people work
Sorting
The process of arranging data into a meaningful order to make it easier to understand, analyze, and visualize
Specific question
A question that is simple, significant, and focused on a single topic or a few closely related ideas.
Split
A function that divides text around a specified character and puts each fragment into a new, separate cell
Sponsor
A professional advocate who is committed to moving the career of another
Spreadsheet
A digital worksheet
SQL
(Refer to Structured Query Language)
Stakeholders
People who invest time and resources into a project and are interested in its outcome
Statistical power
The probability that a test of significance will recognize an effect that is present
Statistical significance
The probability that sample results are not due to random chance
String data type
A sequence of characters and punctuation that contains textual information (Refer to Text data type)
Structural metadata
Metadata that indicates how a piece of data is organized and whether it is part of one or more than one data collection
Structured data
Data organized in a certain format such as rows and columns
Structured Query Language
A computer programming language used to communicate with a database
Structured thinking
The process of recognizing the current problem or situation, organizing available information, revealing gaps and opportunities, and identifying options
SUBSTR
A SQL function that extracts a substring from a string variable
Substring
A smaller subset of a text string
SUM
A spreadsheet function that adds the values of a selected range of cells
Syntax
The predetermined structure of a language that includes all required words, symbols, and punctuation, as well as their proper placement
Technical midset
The ability to break things down into smaller pieces and work with them in an orderly and logical way
Text data type
A sequence of characters and punctuation that contains textual information (also called string data type)
Text string
A group of characters within a cell, most often composed of letters
Third-party-data
Data provided from outside sources who didn’t collect it directly
Time-bound question
A question that specifies a timeframe to be used
Transaction transparecy
The aspect of data ethics that presumes all data-processing activities and algorithms should be explainable and understood by the individual who provides the data
Transferable skills
Skills and qualities that can transfer from one job or industry to another
TRIM
A function that removes leading, trailing, and repeated spaces in data
Turnover rate
The rate at which employees voluntarily leave a company
Typecasting
Converting data from one type to another
Unbiased sampling
When the sample of the population being measured is representative of the population as a whole
Unfair question
A question that makes assumptions or is difficult to answer honestly
Unique
A value that can’t have a duplicate
United States Census Bureau
An agency in the U.S Department of Commerce that serves as the nation’s leading provider of quality data about its people and economy
Unstructured data
Data that is not organized in any easily identifiable manner
Validity
The degree to which that data conforms to constraints when it is input, collected, or created
Verification
A process to confirm that a data-cleaning effort was well executed and the resulting data is accurate and reliable
Video file
A collection of images, audio files, and other data usually encoded in a compressed format such as MP4, MV4, MOV, AVI, or FLV
Visualization
(Refer to data visualization)
VLOOKUP
A spreadsheet function that vertically searches for a certain value in a column to return a corresponding piece of information
WHERE
The section of a query that specifies criteria that the requested data must meet
Wide data
A dataset in which every data subject has a single row with multiple columns to hold that values of various attributes of the subject
World Health Organization
An organization whose primary role is to direct and coordinate international health within the United Nations system
COUNTA
A spreadsheet function that counts the total number of values within a specified range
ORDER BY
A SQL clause that sorts results returned in a query
LIMIT
A SQL clause that specifies the maximum number of records returned in a query
ROUND
A SQL function that returns a number rounded to a certain number of decimal places
