Unit 2 : Introduction to Data Literacy
Data literacy means knowing how to understand, work with, and talk about data. It's about being able to
collect, analyze, and show data in ways that make sense.
Data Pyramid is made of different stages of working with data
Moving up from the bottom
● Data is available in a raw form. Data in this form is not very useful.
● Data is processed to give us information about the world.
● Information about the world leads to knowledge of how things are happening.
● Wisdom allows us to understand why things are happening in a particular way.
Data literacy is essential because it enables individuals to make informed decisions, think critically, solve
problems, and innovate.
How to become Data Literate?
Every data tells a story, but we must be careful before believing the story. Data Literate is a person who
can interact with data to understand the world around them.
Data Literacy Process Framework
The data literacy framework provides guidance on using data efficiently and with all levels of awareness.
Data literacy framework is an iterative process.
What are Data Security and Privacy? How are they related to AI?
Data Privacy and Data Security are often used interchangeably but they are different from each other.
What is Data Privacy?
Data privacy referred to as information privacy is concerned with the proper handling of sensitive data
including personal data and other confidential data, such as certain financial data and intellectual property
data, to meet regulatory requirements as well as protecting the confidentiality and immutability of the
data.
Here are examples of two things which may compromise our data privacy.
Why is it important?
A breach at a hospital
A data breach at a can put personal
government agency can put A breach at a corporation health information in
can put proprietary data in the hands of those
top secret information in the
the hands of a competitor who might misuse it.
hands of an enemy state.
The following best practices can help you ensure data privacy :
● Understanding what data you have collected, how it is handled, and where it is stored.
● Necessary data required for a project should only be collected.
● User consent while data collection must be of utmost importance.
What is Data Security?
Data security is the practice of protecting digital information from unauthorized access, corruption, or
theft throughout its entire lifecycle.
Why is it important?
Due to the rising amount of data in the cloud there is an increased risk of cyber threats. The most
appropriate step for such an amount of traffic being generated is how we control and protect the transfer
of sensitive or personal information at every known place.
The most possible reasons why data security is more important now are :
• Cyber-attacks affect all the people
• The fast-technological changes will boom cyber attacks
Best Practices for Cyber Security
Cyber security involves protecting computers, servers, mobile devices, electronic systems, networks, and data
from harmful attacks.
Do’s
• Use strong, unique passwords with a mix of characters for each account.
• Activate Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) for added security.
• Download software from trusted sources and scan files before opening.
• Prioritize websites with "https://" for secure logins.
• Keep your browser, OS, and antivirus updated regularly.
• Adjust social media privacy settings for limited visibility to close contacts.
• Always lock your screen when away.
• Connect only with trusted individuals online.
• Use secure Wi-Fi networks.
• Report online bullying to a trusted adult immediately.
Don’ts
• Avoid sharing personal info like real name or phone number.
• Don't send pictures to strangers or post them on social media.
• Don't open emails or attachments from unknown sources.
• Ignore suspicious requests for personal info like bank account details.
• Keep passwords and security questions private.
• Don't copy copyrighted software without permission.
• Avoid cyberbullying or using offensive language online.
Acquiring Data, Processing, and Interpreting Data
Types of data Artificial Intelligence is crucial, with data serving as its foundation. We come across
different types of information every day.
Some common types of data include:
Numeric Data is further classified as:
● Continuous data is numeric data that is continuous. E.g., height, weight, temperature, voltage
● Discrete data is numeric data that contains only whole numbers and cannot be fractional
E.g. the number of students in the class – it can only be a whole number, not in decimals.
Types of Data used in three domains of AI :
Data Acquisition/Acquiring
Data Data Acquisition, also known as acquiring data, refers to the procedure of gathering data. This involves
searching for datasets suitable for training AI models.
The process typically comprises three key steps:
Acquiring Data – Sample Data Discovery
Let’s say we want to collect data for making a CV
model for a self-driving car
● We will require pictures of roads and the objects on
roads.
● We can search and download this data from the
internet .
● This process is called data discovery.
Acquiring Data – Sample Data Augmentation
● Data augmentation means increasing the amount of data
by adding copies of existing data with small changes.
● The image given here does not change, but we get data
on the image by changing different parameters like color
and brightness.
● New data is added by slightly changing the existing data
Acquiring Data – Sample Data Generation
● Data generation refers to generating or recording data
using sensors.
● Recording temperature readings of a building is an
example of data generation.
● Recorded data is stored in a computer in a suitable form.
Sources of Data
Various Sources for Acquiring Data:
● Primary Data Sources — Some of the sources for primary data include surveys, interviews,
experiments, etc. The data generated from the experiment is an example of primary data.
Here is an excel sheet showing the data collected for students of a class.
● Secondary Data Sources—Secondary data collection obtains information from external sources,
rather than generating it personally.
Some sources for secondary data collection include :
Best Practices for Acquiring Data Checklist of factors that make data good or bad
Data acquisition from websites
Ethical concerns in data acquisition
While gathering data and choosing datasets, certain ethical issues can be addressed before they occur
Features of Data and Data Preprocessing
Usability of Data
There are three primary factors determining the usability of data:
1. Structure- Defines how data is stored.
2. Cleanliness- Clean data is free from duplicates, missing values, outliers, and other anomalies that may
affect its reliability and usefulness for analysis. In this particular example, duplicate values are removed
after cleaning the data.
3. Accuracy- Accuracy indicates how well the data matches real-world values, ensuring reliability.
Accurate data closely reflects actual values without errors, enhancing the quality and trustworthiness of
the dataset. In this particular example, we are comparing data gathered from measuring the length of a
small box in centimeters.
Kaggle assigns a usability score to the data sets that are present on the website based on scores given by
the users of that data.
Features of Data
● Data features are the characteristics or properties of the data. They describe each piece of
information in a dataset.
● For example, in a table of student records, features could include things like the student's name,
age, or grades.
● In a photo dataset, features might be the colors present in each image. These features help us
understand and analyze the data.
In AI models, we need two types of features: independent and dependent.
Independent features are the input to the model—they're the information we provide to make
predictions.
Dependent features, on the other hand, are the outputs or results of the model—they're what we're trying
to predict.
Data Processing and Data Interpretation
Data processing and interpretation have become very important in today’s world.
Data Processing
▪ Data processing helps computers understand raw data.
▪ Use of computers to perform different operations on data is included under data processing.
Data Interpretation
▪ It is the process of making sense out of data that has been processed.
▪ The interpretation of data helps us answer critical questions using data.
Understanding some keywords related to Data
● Acquire Data- Acquiring data is to collect data from various data sources.
● Data Processing- After raw data is collected, data is processed to derive meaningful information
from it.
● Data Analysis – Data analysis is to examine each component of the data in order to draw
conclusions.
● Data Interpretation – It is to be able to explain what these findings/conclusions mean in a given
context.
● Data Presentation- In this step, you select, organize, and group ideas and evidence in a logical way.
Methods of Data Interpretation
How to interpret Data?
Based on the two types of data, there are two ways to interpret data-
● Quantitative Data Interpretation
● Qualitative Data Interpretation
Qualitative Data Interpretation
● Qualitative data tells us about the emotions and feelings of
people
● Qualitative data interpretation is focused on insights and
motivations of people.
Data Collection Methods – Qualitative Data Interpretation
● Record keeping : This method uses existing reliable documents and other similar sources
of information as the data source. It is similar to going to a library.
● Observation: In this method, the participant – their behavior and emotions – are observed
carefully
● Case Studies: In this method, data is collected from case studies.
● Focus groups: In this method, data is collected from a group discussion on relevant topic.
● Longitudinal Studies: This data collection method is performed on the same data source
repeatedly over an extended period.
● One-to-One Interviews: In this method, data is collected using a one-to-one interview.
5 Steps to Qualitative Data Analysis
1. Collect Data
2. Organize
3. Set a code to the Data Collected
4. Analyze your data
5. Reporting
Quantitative Data Interpretation
▪ Quantitative data interpretation is made on numerical data
▪ It helps us answer questions like “when,” “how many,” and “how often”
▪ For example – (how many) numbers of likes on the Instagram post
Data Collection Methods -Quantitative Data Interpretation
● Interviews: Quantitative interviews play a key role in collecting information.
● Polls: A poll is a type of survey that asks simple questions to respondents. Polls are usually
limited to one question.
● Observations: Quantitative data can be collected through observations in a particular time period
● Longitudinal Studies: A type of study conducted over a long time
● Survey: Surveys can be conducted for a large number of people to collect quantitative data.
4 Steps to Quantitative Data Analysis
1. Relate measurement scales with variables
2. Connect descriptive statistics with data
3. Decide a measurement scale
4. Represent data in an appropriate format
Difference between Qualitative & Quantitative Data Interpretation
Types of Data Interpretation :
There are three ways in which data can be presented:
Textual DI
▪ The data is mentioned in the text form, usually in a paragraph.
▪ Used when the data is not large and can be easily comprehended by reading.
▪ Textual presentation is not suitable for large data.
▪ Example:
Tabular DI
▪ Data is represented systematically in the form of rows and columns.
▪ Title of the Table (Item of Expenditure) contains the description of the table content.
▪ Column Headings (Year; Salary; Fuel and Transport; Bonus; Interest on Loans; Taxes) contains the
description of information contained in columns.
Graphical DI
Bar Graphs- In a Bar Graph, data is represented using vertical and horizontal bars.
Pie Charts
▪ Pie Charts have the shape of a pie and each slice of the pie represents the portion of the entire
pie allocated to each category.
▪ It is a circular chart divided into various sections (think of a cake cut into slices).
▪ Each section of the pie chart is proportional to the corresponding value.
Line Graphs
▪ A line graph is created by connecting various data points.
▪ It shows the change in quantity over time.
