topic 5

Question 1

what is structured data

Answer 1

Data that is organized in a clear format, usually in rows and columns

Question 2

what is unstructured data

Answer 2

Data that is unorganized, and has no clear structure.

Question 3

The Value of Extracting Meaningful Information from Data

Answer 3

Better decision-making

Improved efficiency (e.g. finding process bottlenecks)

Customer targeting

Competitive advantage

Forecasting trends

Example: A company analyzes social media comments (unstructured) and sales records (structured) to improve product design

Question 4

what is data

Answer 4

raw facts that are unorganized and have no context

Question 5

what is information

Answer 5

data that is organized and has context, given in a way so as to make it useful

Question 6

examples of structured data

Answer 6

databases
spreadsheets
online forms

Question 7

examples of unstructured data

Answer 7

emails
videos
soical media
chats

Question 8

why are databases used to structure data

Answer 8

Organise data clearly and consistently

🔍 Search, sort, and filter data quickly

🔒 Improve data accuracy (integrity). using rules like data types and primary keys

Reduce duplication. Databases use relationships between tables (via foreign keys), so the same data isn’t stored multiple times.

👥 Allow multiple users to safely access and manage dat

Question 9

what is a table

Answer 9

it stores data in rows and coloumns

Question 10

what is a primary key

Answer 10

a unique identifier for each record in a table

Question 11

what is a foreign key

Answer 11

A field in one table that links to a primary key in another table

Question 12

what is a composite key

Answer 12

A combination of two or more fields used together as a primary key

Question 13

what is a record

Answer 13

a row in a table

Question 14

what is a field

Answer 14

a column in a table

Question 15

what is an entity

Answer 15

An entity is something you want to store data about in a database

Question 16

what is the one-to-one entity relationship

Answer 16

One record in one table relate to another record in another table

Question 17

what is the one-to-many entity relationsbip

Answer 17

One record in one table relate to many records in another. ex-One Customer can place many orders, but each Order belongs to one customer.

Question 18

what is the many-to-many relationship

Answer 18

Many records in one table relate to many records in another

Question 19

disadvantages of using databases to structure data

Answer 19

1. Setup Time and Cost
   Designing and building a good database takes time and expertise.
2. Complexity
   managing relationships, and writing queries can be complex for beginners.
3. Maintenance Required
   Regular updates, backups, and optimisations are needed.
4. Less Flexibility for Unstructured Data
   Databases are not suited for storing things like video, social media posts, or documents without extra effort.
5. Performance Issues at Scale (If Poorly Designed)
   A poorly structured database can become slow as data grows.