Probability and statistics for Computer Science

CHAPTER 2

METHODS OF DATA COLLECTION & PRESENTATION

2.1 INTRODUCTION TO METHODS OF DATA COLLECTION
Data: Data defined as any information collected as parts of a research project and
numerical result of any scientific measurement it may be in the form of counting or
measurement.
Raw data: are collected data, which have not been organized numerically.
Array: is an arrangement of raw numerical data in ascending or descending order of
magnitude.
Frequency: is the number of times a certain value of the variable repeated in the
given data or the number of times a certain value (set of value) occurs in a specific
group.
2.2.1. Sources of data

Any scientific investigation requires data related to the study. The required data is
obtained from two sources called primary & secondary.
1. Primary Data
 Data measured or collect by the investigator or the user directly from the
source.
 Primary data are data originally collected for the immediate purpose. The
sources of primary data are the objects under study themselves and there is
also a direct contact between the investigator and the items (objects)
under investigation because of this it is more expensive.
2. Secondary Data

 When an investigator uses data, which have already been collected by others, such
data are called "Secondary Data". Such data are primary data for the agency that
collected them, and become secondary for someone else who uses these data for
his own purposes.
 The secondary data can be obtained from journals, reports, government
publications, publications of professionals and research organizations. Secondary
data are less expensive to collect both in money, cost and time.
Note:
 Data which are primary for one may be secondary for the other.
 Primary data are more expensive than secondary data.

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2.2.2. Method of Primary Data Collection

 In primary data collection, you collect the data yourself using methods such as
I. Questionnaire methods: it includes personal interview (face to face,
telephone) & mail interview.
II. Observation: It involves recording the behavioral patterns of people, objects
and events in a systematic manner.
III. Laboratory experiment: Conducting laboratory experiments on fields of
chemical, biological sciences and so on.

2.2. METHODS OF DATA PRESENTATION

Having collected and edited the data, the next important step is to organize it. That is to
present it in a readily comprehensible condensed form that aids in order to draw inferences
from it. It is also necessary that the like be separated from the unlike ones.
The presentation of data is broadly classified in to the following two categories:
 Tabular presentation
 Diagrammatic and Graphic presentation.

The process of arranging data in to classes or categories according to similarities

technically is called classification.
Classification is a preliminary and it prepares the ground for proper presentation of data.
 Frequency distribution: is the organization of raw data in table form using classes
and frequencies.
There are three basic types of frequency distributions
 Categorical frequency distribution
 Ungrouped frequency distribution
 Grouped frequency distribution

There are specific procedures for constructing each type.

1) Categorical frequency Distribution:

Used for data that can be place in specific categories such as nominal, or ordinal. e.g. marital
status.

Example: a social worker collected the following data on marital status for 25
persons.(M=married, S=single, W=widowed, D=divorced)

M S D W D

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Probability and statistics for Computer Science

S S M M M
W D S M M
W D D S S
S W W D D

Solution:

Since the data are categorical, discrete classes can be used. There are four types of marital
status M, S, D, and W. These types will be used as class for the distribution. We follow
procedure to construct the frequency distribution.

Step 1: Make a table as shown.

Class Tally Frequency Percent

(1) (2) (3) (4)

M
S
D
W
Step 2: Tally the data and place the result in column (2).

Step 3: Count the tally and place the result in column (3).

Step 4: Find the percentages of values in each class by using;

f
% * 100 Where f= frequency of the class, n=total number of value.
n

Percentages are not normally a part of frequency distribution but they can be added since they
are used in certain types diagrammatic such as pie charts.

Step 5: Find the total for column (3) and (4).

Combing all the steps one can construct the following frequency distribution.

Class Tally Frequency Percent

(1) (2) (3) (4)

M 6 24
/////
S //// // 7 28
D //// // 7 28
W //// 5 20

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Probability and statistics for Computer Science

2) Ungrouped frequency Distribution:

-Is a table of all the potential raw score values that could possible occur in the data along with
the number of times each actually occurred.
-Is often constructed for small set or data on discrete variable.
Constructing ungrouped frequency distribution:
 First find the smallest and largest raw score in the collected data.
 Arrange the data in order of magnitude and count the frequency.
 To facilitate counting one may include a column of tallies.
Example:
The following data represent the mark of 20 students.
80 76 90 85 80
70 60 62 70 85
65 60 63 74 75
76 70 70 80 85
Construct a frequency distribution, which is ungrouped.
Solution:
Step 1: Find the range, Range=Max-Min=90-60=30.
Step 2: Make a table as shown
Step 3: Tally the data.
Step 4: Compute the frequency.
Mark Tally Frequency
60 // 2
62 / 1
63 / 1
65 / 1
70 //// 4
74 / 1
75 // 2
76 / 1
80 /// 3
85 /// 3
90 / 1

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Probability and statistics for Computer Science

Each individual value is presented separately, that is why it is named ungrouped frequency
distribution.

3) Grouped frequency Distribution:

-When the range of the data is large, the data must be grouped in to classes that are more than
one unit in width.

Definitions:

 Grouped Frequency Distribution: a frequency distribution when several numbers

are grouped in one class.
 Class limits: Separates one class in a grouped frequency distribution from another.
The limits could actually appear in the data and have gaps between the upper limits of
one class and lower limit of the next.
 Units of measurement (U): the distance between two possible consecutive measures.
It is usually taken as 1, 0.1, 0.01, 0.001, -----.
 Class boundaries: Separates one class in a grouped frequency distribution from
another. The boundaries have one more decimal places than the row data and therefore
do not appear in the data. There is no gap between the upper boundary of one class and
lower boundary of the next class. The lower class boundary is found by subtracting
U/2 from the corresponding lower class limit and the upper class boundary is found by
adding U/2 to the corresponding upper class limit.
 Class width: the difference between the upper and lower class boundaries of any
class. It is also the difference between the lower limits of any two consecutive classes
or the difference between any two consecutive class marks.
 Class mark (Mid points): it is the average of the lower and upper class limits or the
average of upper and lower class boundary.
 Cumulative frequency: is the number of observations less than/more than or equal to
a specific value.
 Cumulative frequency above: it is the total frequency of all values greater than or
equal to the lower class boundary of a given class.
 Cumulative frequency blow: it is the total frequency of all values less than or equal
to the upper class boundary of a given class.
 Cumulative Frequency Distribution (CFD): it is the tabular arrangement of class
interval together with their corresponding cumulative frequencies. It can be more than
or less than type, depending on the type of cumulative frequency used.
 Relative frequency (rf): it is the frequency divided by the total frequency.
 Relative cumulative frequency (rcf): it is the cumulative frequency divided by the
total frequency.

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Guidelines for classes

1. There should be between 5 and 20 classes.

2. The classes must be mutually exclusive. This means that no data value can fall into
two different classes
3. The classes must be all inclusive or exhaustive. This means that all data values
must be included.
4. The classes must be continuous. There are no gaps in a frequency distribution.
5. The classes must be equal in width. The exception here is the first or last class. It is
possible to have an "below ..." or "... and above" class. This is often used with
ages.

Steps for constructing Grouped frequency Distribution

1. Find the largest and smallest values

2. Compute the Range(R) = Maximum - Minimum
3. Select the number of classes desired, usually between 5 and 20 or use Sturges rule
k  1  3.32 log n where k is number of classes desired and n is total number of
observation.
4. Find the class width by dividing the range by the number of classes and rounding
R
up, not off. w  .
k
5. Pick a suitable starting point less than or equal to the minimum value. The starting
point is called the lower limit of the first class. Continue to add the class width to
this lower limit to get the rest of the lower limits.
6. To find the upper limit of the first class, subtract U from the lower limit of the
second class. Then continue to add the class width to this upper limit to find the
rest of the upper limits.
7. Find the boundaries by subtracting U/2 units from the lower limits and adding U/2
units from the upper limits. The boundaries are also half-way between the upper
limit of one class and the lower limit of the next class. !may not be necessary to
find the boundaries.
8. Tally the data.
9. Find the frequencies.
10. Find the cumulative frequencies. Depending on what you're trying to accomplish,
it may not be necessary to find the cumulative frequencies.
11. If necessary, find the relative frequencies and/or relative cumulative frequencies.

Example*:

Construct a frequency distribution for the following data.

11 29 6 33 14 31 22 27 19 20
18 17 22 38 23 21 26 34 39 27

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Probability and statistics for Computer Science

Solutions:

Step 1: Find the highest and the lowest value H=39, L=6

Step 2: Find the range; R=H-L=39-6=33

Step 3: Select the number of class’s desired using Sturges formula;

k  1  3.32 log n =1+3.32log (20) =5.32=6(rounding up)

Step 4: Find the class width; w=R/k=33/6=5.5=6 (rounding up)

Step 5: Select the starting point, let it be the minimum observation.

 6, 12, 18, 24, 30, 36 are the lower class limits.

Step 6: Find the upper class limit; e.g. the first upper class=12-U=12-1=11

 11, 17, 23, 29, 35, 41 are the upper class limits.

So combining step 5 and step 6, one can construct the following classes.

Class limits
6 – 11
12 – 17
18 – 23
24 – 29
30 – 35
36 – 41

Step 7: Find the class boundaries;

E.g. for class 1 Lower class boundary=6-U/2=5.5

Upper class boundary =11+U/2=11.5

 Then continue adding w on both boundaries to obtain the rest boundaries. By

doing so one can obtain the following classes.

Class boundary
5.5 – 11.5
11.5 – 17.5
17.5 – 23.5
23.5 – 29.5
29.5 – 35.5
35.5 – 41.5

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Step 8: tally the data.

Step 9: Write the numeric values for the tallies in the frequency column.

Step 10: Find cumulative frequency.

Step 11: Find relative frequency or/and relative cumulative frequency.

The complete frequency distribution follows:

Class Class boundary Class Tally Freq. Cf (less Cf (more rf. rcf (less
limit Mark than than type) than type
type)
6 – 11 5.5 – 11.5 8.5 // 2 2 20 0.10 0.10
12 – 17 11.5 – 17.5 14.5 // 2 4 18 0.10 0.20
18 – 23 17.5 – 23.5 20.5 7 11 16 0.35 0.55
//////
24 – 29 23.5 – 29.5 26.5 //// 4 15 9 0.20 0.75
30 – 35 29.5 – 35.5 32.5 /// 3 18 5 0.15 0.90
36 – 41 35.5 – 41.5 38.5 // 2 20 2 0.10 1.00

Diagrammatic and Graphic presentation of data.

These are techniques for presenting data in visual displays using geometric and pictures.

Importance:

 They have greater attraction.

 They facilitate comparison.
 They are easily understandable.

-Diagrams are appropriate for presenting discrete data.

-The three most commonly used diagrammatic presentation for discrete as well as qualitative data
are:

 Pie charts
 Pictogram
 Bar charts

Pie chart

- A pie chart is a circle that is divided in to sections or wedges according to the percentage of
frequencies in each category of the distribution. The angle of the sector is obtained using:

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 Probability and statistics for Computer Science

Valueofthepart
Angleof sec tor  *100
thewholequantity

Example: Draw a suitable diagram to represent the following population in a town.

Men Women Girls Boys

2500 2000 4000 1500

Solutions:

Step 1: Find the percentage.

Step 2: Find the number of degrees for each class.

Step 3: Using a protractor and compass, graph each section and write its name corresponding
percentage.

Class Frequency Percent Degree

Men 2500 25 90
Women 2000 20 72
Girls 4000 40 144
Boys 1500 15 54

CLASS

Boy s Men

Girls Women

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 Probability and statistics for Computer Science

Pictogram

-In these diagram, we represent data by means of some picture symbols. We decide
abut a suitable picture to represent a definite number of units in which the variable is
measured.

Example: draw a pictogram to represent the following population of a town.

Year 1989 1990 1991 1992

Population 2000 3000 5000 7000

Bar Charts:
- A set of bars (thick lines or narrow rectangles) representing some magnitude over time space.
- They are useful for comparing aggregate over time space.
- Bars can be drawn either vertically or horizontally.
- There are different types of bar charts. The most common being :
 Simple bar chart
 Deviation o0r two way bar chart
 Broken bar chart
 Component or sub divided bar chart.
 Multiple bar charts.

Simple Bar Chart

-Are used to display data on one variable.

-They are thick lines (narrow rectangles) having the same breadth. The magnitude of a quantity is
represented by the height /length of the bar.
Example: The following data represent sale by product, 1957- 1959 of a given company for three
products A, B, C.

Product Sales($) Sales($) Sales($)

In 1957 In 1958 In 1959
A 12 14 18
B 24 21 18
C 24 35 54

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 Probability and statistics for Computer Science

Solutions:

Sales by product in 1957

30
25
Sales in $

20
15
10
5
0
A B C
product

Component Bar chart

-When there is a desire to show how a total (or aggregate) is divided in to its component parts, we use
component bar chart.
-The bars represent total value of a variable with each total broken in to its component parts and
different colours or designs are used for identifications
Example:
Draw a component bar chart to represent the sales by product from 1957 to 1959.
Solutions:

SALES BY PRODUCT 1957-1959

100

80
Sales in $

Product C
60
Product B
40
Product A
20

0
1957 1958 1959
Year of production

Multiple Bar charts

- These are used to display data on more than one variable.
- They are used for comparing different variables at the same time.
Example:
Draw a component bar chart to represent the sales by product from 1957 to 1959.

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 Probability and statistics for Computer Science

Solutions:

Sales by product 1957-1959

60
50
Sales in $

40 Product A
30 Product B
20 Product C

10
0
1957 1958 1959
Year of production

Graphical Presentation of data

- The histogram, frequency polygon and cumulative frequency graph or ogive are most
commonly applied graphical representation for continuous data.
Procedures for constructing statistical graphs:
 Draw and label the X and Y axes.
 Choose a suitable scale for the frequencies or cumulative frequencies and label it on the Y
axes.
 Represent the class boundaries for the histogram or ogive or the mid points for the
frequency polygon on the X axes.
 Plot the points.
 Draw the bars or lines to connect the points.
Histogram

A graph which displays the data by using vertical bars of various height to represent frequencies.
Class boundaries are placed along the horizontal axes. Class marks and class limits are some times
used as quantity on the X axes.
Frequency Polygon:
- A line graph. The frequency is placed along the vertical axis and classes mid points are placed
along the horizontal axis. It is customer to the next higher and lower class interval with
corresponding frequency of zero, this is to make it a complete polygon.
Example: Draw a frequency polygon for the above data (example *).

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 Probability and statistics for Computer Science

Solutions:
8

4
Value Frequency

0
2. 5 8. 5 14 .5 20 .5 26 .5 32 .5 38 .5 44 .5

Class Mid points

Ogive (cumulative frequency polygon)

- A graph showing the cumulative frequency (less than or more than type) plotted against upper
or lower class boundaries respectively. That is class boundaries are plotted along the horizontal
axis and the corresponding cumulative frequencies are plotted along the vertical axis. The points
are joined by a free hand curve.

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