ENGINEERING DATA ANALYSIS

OBTAINING DATA
 Data Analysis: Overview
o Methods of Data Collection
o Planning and Conducting Surveys
o Planning and Conducting Experiments: Introduction to Design of Experiments
 Data = Information
LEARNING OUTCOMES
 At the end of the discussion, the students should be able to:
o Interpret the application of statistics in solving engineering problems;
o Understand the difference between descriptive statistics and inferential statistics;
o Explain the different methods of collecting data;
o differentiate between primary and secondary data, discrete and continuous data;
o discuss the scales of measurement and their examples; and
o Assess the advantages that designed experiments have in comparison to other
methods of collecting engineering data.
DATA ANALYSIS
 What Engineers (Researchers) do?
o An Engineer is someone who solves problems of interest to society with the
efficient application of scientific principles by:
 Refining existing products = refine means improving
 Designing new products or processes
THE CREATIVE PROCESS
STATISTICS
Statistics supports the creative process and uses data to
o Make decision
o Solve problems
o Design products and processes
THE CHANGING DEFINITION OF STATISTICS
 Statistics has then for its object that of presenting a faithful representation of a state at a
determined epoch (Quetelet, 1849).
 Statistics may be regarded (i) as the study of populations, (ii) as the study of variation,
and (iii) as the study of methods of the reduction of data (Fisher, 1925).
 Statistics is a scientific discipline concerned with collection, analysis, and interpretation
of data obtained from observation or experiment. The subject has a coherent structure
based on the theory of probability and includes many different procedures which
contribute to research and development throughout the whole of Science and Technolog
(Pearson, 1936).
 Statistics is the name for that science and art which deals with uncertain inferences –
which uses numbers to find out something about nature and experience (Weaver, 1952).
 Statistics has become known in the 20th Century as the mathematical tool for analyzing
experimental and observational (Porter, 1986).
 Statistics is the art of learning from data (Ross, 2009).
STATISTICS
 The science of conducting studies or research to collect, present, describe, analyze,
interpret, and draw conclusions from data
 DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS = Collect, present, and describe
 INFERENTIAL STATISTICS = Analyze, interpret, and draw conclusions
o Data
 The values (measurements or observations) that the variables can assume
o Data Set
 A collection of data values
 Data Value or datum = singular of data
o Two main areas
 Descriptive Statistics = Collect, present, and describe
 Inferential Statistics = Analyze, interpret, and draw conclusions
DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS
 Concerned with the collection, organization, description, summarization and presentation
of data
o Does not, however, allow us to make conclusions beyond the data we have
analyzed or reach conclusions regarding any hypothesis we might have made.
 Ways of Presenting Data
o Table/Tabulation
o Pie Chart
o Bar Graph (Dependent Variable and Independent Variable)
o Line Graph (Dependent Variable and Independent Variable)
INFERENTIAL STATISTICS
 The science of generating from samples to populations, performing estimations and
hypothesis tests, determining relationships among variable, and making predictions
o Inferential statistics takes data from a sample and makes inferences about the
larger population from which the sample was drawn
o Concerned with the drawing of conclusions.
HYPOTHESIS TESTING
 The area of inferential statistics which is a decision-making process for evaluating claims
about a population, based on information obtained from samples.
EXERCISES
Descriptive or Inferential Statistics
1. The average price of a 30-secondad for the Academy Awards show in a recent year
was 1.90 million dollars. DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS
2. The Department of Economic and Social Affairs predicts that the population of
Mexico City, Mexico, in 2030 will be 238,647,000 people. INFERENTIAL
STATISTICS
3. A medical report stated that taking statins is proven to lower heart attacks, but
some people are at a slightly higher risk of developing diabetes when taking
statins. INFERENTIAL STATISTICS
4. A survey of 2234 people conducted by the Harris Poll found that 55% of the
respondents said that excessive complaining by adults was the most annoying
social media habit. DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS
IMPORTANT TERMS
 Population
o Consists of all subjects (human or otherwise) that are being studied
 Sample
o A group of subjects selected
o From a population
 Variable
o A characteristic or attribute that can assume different values
 Random Variables
o Variables whose values are determined by chance
VARIABILITY
 Statistical techniques are useful to describe and understand variability.
 By variability, we mean successive observations of a system or phenomenon do not
produce exactly the same result.
 Statistics gives us a framework or describing this variability and for learning about
potential sources of variability.
ENGINEERING EXAMPLE OF VARIABILITY
 Eight prototype units are produced and their pull-off forces are measured (in pounds):
12.6, 12.9, 13.4, 12.3, 13.6, 13.5, 12.6, 13.1.
 All of the prototypes do not have the same pull-off force.
DOT DIAGRAM
 Is a very useful plot for displaying a small body of data
o say up you about 20 observations
 A plot that allows us to see easily two features of the data; the location, or the middle,
and the scatter or variability.
CLASSIFICATION OF VARIABLES
1. QUALITATIVE VARIABLES
 Variables that have distinct categories according to some characteristic or attribute
 EXAMPLES
o Gender: Male or Female
o Religious Preference
o Geographic Locations
2. QUANTITATIVE VARIABLES
 Variables that can be counted or measured
  EXAMPLES
o Age
o Height
o Weight
o Body temperature
 CLASSIFICATION OF QUANTITATIVE OR NUMERICAL VARIABLES
o Discrete Variable
 A quantitative variable that can assume a countable number of values
 There is a gap between any two values
 EXAMPLES
 Number of children in a family
 Number of students in a classroom
 Number of calls received by a call center each day for a month
o Continuous Variable
 A quantitative variable that can assume an uncountable/infinite
number of values in an interval between any two specific values
 Obtained by measuring
 Often include fractions and decimals
 EXAMPLES
 Temperature
SUMMARY
 VARIABLE
o Quantitative or Numerical
 Discrete
 Continuous
o Qualitative or Attribute
 Nominal or Ordinal
EXERCISES
Classify each variable as a discrete or continuous variable
1. The number of hours during a week that children ages 12 to 15 reported that they
watched television. CONTINUOUS
2. The number of touchdowns a quarterback scored each year in his college football
career. DISCRETE
3. The amount of money a person earns per week working at a fast-food restaurant.
DISCRETE
4. The weights of the football players on the teams that play in the NFL this year
CONTINUOUS