Critical Race & Ethnic Studies 110 (Myers)

Data: Fundamentally, data=information. We typically use the term to refer to numeric files that are created and organized for analysis. There are two types of data:

• Aggregate data are statistical summaries of data, meaning that the data have been analyzed in some way.  The Data-Planet repository is an excellent resource for obtaining aggregated data. 
• Microdata: Individual response data obtained in surveys and censuses - these are data points directly observed or collected from a specific unit of observation. Also known as raw data. 

Data point: Singular of data. Refers to a single point of data.

Quantitative data/variables: Information that can be handled numerically.

Qualitative data/variables: Information that refers to the quality of something. Ethnographic research, participant observation, open-ended interviews, etc., may collect qualitative data. Some element of the results obtained via qualitative research may be handled numerically, eg, how many observations, number of interviews, etc.

Indicator: Typically used as a synonym for statistics that describe variables that describe something about the socioeconomic environment of a society, eg, per capita income, unemployment rate, median years of education.

Statistic: A number that describes some characteristic, or status, of a variable, eg, a count or a percentage.

Statistics: Numerical summaries of data that has been analyzed in some way.

Time series data: Any data arranged in chronological order.

Variable: Any finding that can change or vary. Examples include anything that can be measured, such as the number of logging operations in Alabama.

Database: A collection of data organized for research and retrieval.

These federal agency programs collect, analyze, and disseminate statistical data and information.

• Bureau of Economic Analysis collects information on economic indicators, national and international trade, accounts, and industry.
• Bureau of Justice Statistics reports on justice systems, crime, criminal offenders, and victims of crime.
• Bureau of Labor Statistics measures labor market activity, working conditions, and price changes in the U.S. economy.
• Bureau of Transportation Statistics provides data on airline on-time performance, pirates at sea, transportation safety and availability, motorcycle trends, and more.
• Census Bureau is the main source of data about our nation's people and economy.
• Economic Research Service informs public and private decision making on economic and policy issues related to agriculture, food, the environment, and rural development.  
• Energy Information Administration provides data on U.S. use of coal, natural gas, nuclear energy, renewable energy, and more.
• National Agricultural Statistical Service researches data on food production and supply, organic sales, chemical use, demographics of U.S. producers, and more. Every five years it conducts the Census of Agriculture that provides agricultural data for every county in the United States.
• National Center for Education Statistics researches education in the United States. It publishes the Digest of Education Statistics, which includes international comparisons of students, and the annual report to Congress, The Condition of Education, which reports the progress of American education.
• National Center for Health Statistics is the principal health statistics agency for improving the health of the American people.
• National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics publishes data on the American science and engineering workforce and the progress of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education in the United States.
• Office of Personnel Management provides statistics on the Federal civilian workforce through data sources such as FedScope.
• Social Security Administration Office of Research Evaluation and Statistics offers data on social security program benefits, payments, covered workers, and more.
• Internal Revenue Service Statistics of Income examines tax returns to report on such things as sources of income, exemptions, use of medical savings accounts, migration and geographic data, tax information on foreign corporations controlled by U.S. parent corporations, exports, international boycotts, and investments and activities in the U.S. by foreign persons.

From www.usa.gov/statistics