Data Management Applications C170
What is a table? - Answer A table is a persistent representation of a logical relation that
is a relation whose contents can be saved for permanent use.
What are the characteristics of a relational table? - Answer The characteristics of a
relational table are that a table is perceived as a two-dimensional structure composed of
rows and columns, each row (tuple) represents a single entity occurrence within the set,
each column represents an attribute, each column has a distinct name, each
intersection of a row and column represents a single data value, all values in a column
must be of the same data format, the order of the rows and columns don't matter to the
DBMS, and
each table must have an attribute (or combination of attributes) that uniquely identifies
each row (tuple).
What is a tuple? - Answer A tuple is a row that represents a single entity occurrence
within a set.
What are records? - Answer A record is the same as a tuple (row).
What is a field? - Answer A field is a column.
What is a key? - Answer A key consists of one or more attributes that determine other
attributes. For example, a social security number identifies all of the other attributes
related to that person.
What is determination? - Answer Determination is the state in which knowing the value
of one attribute allows you to determine the value of another attribute. For example, if
you know a key, you can find other information.
What is functional dependence? - Answer Functional dependence is when knowing the
value of one or more attributes lets you know the value of the other attributes. For
example, knowing the first name and the social security number would let you find the
person's last name.
What is full functional dependence? - Answer Full functional dependence is when
knowing the value of one or more attributes lets you know the value of other attributes
and the value of the known attributes are NEEDED to find the other attributes. For
example, a social security number lets you find the first and last name of someone. This
is full functional dependence. If it was a social security number and a first name this
would just be functional dependence because the first name is not required to look up
the last name. All you need is the SSN.
,What is a determinant? - Answer A determinant is an attribute whose value determines
the value of other attributes. For example, a social security number could be the
determinant for your last name.
What is a dependent? - Answer A dependent is an attribute whose value is determined
by another attribute. For example, you last name could be a dependent of your social
security number.
What is a composite key? - Answer A composite key is a key that is composed of one or
more attribute. For example, the key of your last name and you social security number
could be used to determine your first name. This would be a composite key because
you are using your last name and your SSN in the key.
What is a superkey? - Answer A superkey is a key that can uniquely identify any row in
a table. Some examples of this would be your social security number identifying a row
corresponding to your information, but a superkey isn't limited to full functional
dependence. Your SSN and your last name used as a key would still be a superkey.
What is a candidate key? - Answer A candidate key is a minimal super key. This is to
say it has no extra attributes. If you only need a social security number to identify the
row related to a person than the candidate key is the SSN. A key consisting of an SSN
and the last name in this case would not be a candidate key.
What is entity integrity? - Answer Entity integrity is the condition in which each row
(entity instance or tuple) in the table has it's own unique identity. This requires that all
values in the primary key be unique and that the primary key cannot be null.
What is a null? - Answer A null is the absence of a data value. A null should be avoided
whenever possible. In fact, you can set a rule that prevents an attribute from being null.
A null can create an issue when a function like average is used.
What is a foreign key? - Answer A foreign key is the primary key of one table that has
been placed into another table to create a common attribute. For instance, a student id
number could be the primary key for information on a student but a foreign key for a
table containing a class roster.
What is referential integrity? - Answer Referential integrity is the condition in which
every reference to an entity instance by another entity is valid. In other words, a foreign
key needs to be either null or a valid primary key in another table.
What is a primary key? - Answer A primary key is a candidate key selected to uniquely
identify all other attributes in a given row and it may not contain null entries. Examples
of this include student ID's and social security numbers.
What is a secondary key? - Answer A secondary key is a key that is used strictly for
data retrieval purposes. A secondary key does not always return a unique outcome. For
, instance, if a person doesn't know their student ID, you could still look them up by their
first and last name in the system but that might return several students with the same
name and you'd have to look through the list to find the appropriate one.
What is a flag? - Answer A flag is used to indicate the absence of some value to avoid
using a null.
What is relational algebra? - Answer Relational algebra defines the theoretical way of
manipulating table contents using relational operators.
What is a relvar? - Answer A relvar is the variable that holds a relation. It is composed
of two parts: a relvar heading and a relvar body.
What is a relvar heading? - Answer The relvar heading contains the name of the
attributes.
What is a relvar body? - Answer A relvar body contains the relation.
What is a relation (not in general terms where you can use table and relation
interchangeably)? - Answer A relation is the data that we see in our tables not the data
itself. It's a relationship between sets of information.
What is the property of closure? - Answer Closure is a property that permits the use of
relational operators on existing relations to create new relations.
What is a unary operator? - Answer A unary operator in regards to SQL is an operator
that works on only one table.
What is the SELECT (sometimes referred to as RESTRICT) operator used for? -
Answer The SELECT (or RESTRICT) operator is used to select certain rows (aka
tuples). It yields values for all rows that satisfy a given condition. For example a
SELECT statement that looks for students with a gpa below 2.0 could be used to
produce a table with all rows that contain a gpa lower than 2.0. Formally, SELECT is
denoted by a lower case sigma symbol. This is a unary operator that is it only accepts
one table as input.
What is the PROJECT operator used for? - Answer The PROJECT operator is a unary
operator that will return only the attributes requested that is to say it yields columns. It
does not limit the rows returned so it will return all rows within the requested columns.
Formally it is denoted by the Greek letter pi.
What is the UNION operator? - Answer The UNION operator combines all rows from
two tables excluding duplicate rows. To be used in the UNION the two tables must
contain the same attributes. Union is denoted by a symbol that looks like an uppercase
U.
What is a table? - Answer A table is a persistent representation of a logical relation that
is a relation whose contents can be saved for permanent use.
What are the characteristics of a relational table? - Answer The characteristics of a
relational table are that a table is perceived as a two-dimensional structure composed of
rows and columns, each row (tuple) represents a single entity occurrence within the set,
each column represents an attribute, each column has a distinct name, each
intersection of a row and column represents a single data value, all values in a column
must be of the same data format, the order of the rows and columns don't matter to the
DBMS, and
each table must have an attribute (or combination of attributes) that uniquely identifies
each row (tuple).
What is a tuple? - Answer A tuple is a row that represents a single entity occurrence
within a set.
What are records? - Answer A record is the same as a tuple (row).
What is a field? - Answer A field is a column.
What is a key? - Answer A key consists of one or more attributes that determine other
attributes. For example, a social security number identifies all of the other attributes
related to that person.
What is determination? - Answer Determination is the state in which knowing the value
of one attribute allows you to determine the value of another attribute. For example, if
you know a key, you can find other information.
What is functional dependence? - Answer Functional dependence is when knowing the
value of one or more attributes lets you know the value of the other attributes. For
example, knowing the first name and the social security number would let you find the
person's last name.
What is full functional dependence? - Answer Full functional dependence is when
knowing the value of one or more attributes lets you know the value of other attributes
and the value of the known attributes are NEEDED to find the other attributes. For
example, a social security number lets you find the first and last name of someone. This
is full functional dependence. If it was a social security number and a first name this
would just be functional dependence because the first name is not required to look up
the last name. All you need is the SSN.
,What is a determinant? - Answer A determinant is an attribute whose value determines
the value of other attributes. For example, a social security number could be the
determinant for your last name.
What is a dependent? - Answer A dependent is an attribute whose value is determined
by another attribute. For example, you last name could be a dependent of your social
security number.
What is a composite key? - Answer A composite key is a key that is composed of one or
more attribute. For example, the key of your last name and you social security number
could be used to determine your first name. This would be a composite key because
you are using your last name and your SSN in the key.
What is a superkey? - Answer A superkey is a key that can uniquely identify any row in
a table. Some examples of this would be your social security number identifying a row
corresponding to your information, but a superkey isn't limited to full functional
dependence. Your SSN and your last name used as a key would still be a superkey.
What is a candidate key? - Answer A candidate key is a minimal super key. This is to
say it has no extra attributes. If you only need a social security number to identify the
row related to a person than the candidate key is the SSN. A key consisting of an SSN
and the last name in this case would not be a candidate key.
What is entity integrity? - Answer Entity integrity is the condition in which each row
(entity instance or tuple) in the table has it's own unique identity. This requires that all
values in the primary key be unique and that the primary key cannot be null.
What is a null? - Answer A null is the absence of a data value. A null should be avoided
whenever possible. In fact, you can set a rule that prevents an attribute from being null.
A null can create an issue when a function like average is used.
What is a foreign key? - Answer A foreign key is the primary key of one table that has
been placed into another table to create a common attribute. For instance, a student id
number could be the primary key for information on a student but a foreign key for a
table containing a class roster.
What is referential integrity? - Answer Referential integrity is the condition in which
every reference to an entity instance by another entity is valid. In other words, a foreign
key needs to be either null or a valid primary key in another table.
What is a primary key? - Answer A primary key is a candidate key selected to uniquely
identify all other attributes in a given row and it may not contain null entries. Examples
of this include student ID's and social security numbers.
What is a secondary key? - Answer A secondary key is a key that is used strictly for
data retrieval purposes. A secondary key does not always return a unique outcome. For
, instance, if a person doesn't know their student ID, you could still look them up by their
first and last name in the system but that might return several students with the same
name and you'd have to look through the list to find the appropriate one.
What is a flag? - Answer A flag is used to indicate the absence of some value to avoid
using a null.
What is relational algebra? - Answer Relational algebra defines the theoretical way of
manipulating table contents using relational operators.
What is a relvar? - Answer A relvar is the variable that holds a relation. It is composed
of two parts: a relvar heading and a relvar body.
What is a relvar heading? - Answer The relvar heading contains the name of the
attributes.
What is a relvar body? - Answer A relvar body contains the relation.
What is a relation (not in general terms where you can use table and relation
interchangeably)? - Answer A relation is the data that we see in our tables not the data
itself. It's a relationship between sets of information.
What is the property of closure? - Answer Closure is a property that permits the use of
relational operators on existing relations to create new relations.
What is a unary operator? - Answer A unary operator in regards to SQL is an operator
that works on only one table.
What is the SELECT (sometimes referred to as RESTRICT) operator used for? -
Answer The SELECT (or RESTRICT) operator is used to select certain rows (aka
tuples). It yields values for all rows that satisfy a given condition. For example a
SELECT statement that looks for students with a gpa below 2.0 could be used to
produce a table with all rows that contain a gpa lower than 2.0. Formally, SELECT is
denoted by a lower case sigma symbol. This is a unary operator that is it only accepts
one table as input.
What is the PROJECT operator used for? - Answer The PROJECT operator is a unary
operator that will return only the attributes requested that is to say it yields columns. It
does not limit the rows returned so it will return all rows within the requested columns.
Formally it is denoted by the Greek letter pi.
What is the UNION operator? - Answer The UNION operator combines all rows from
two tables excluding duplicate rows. To be used in the UNION the two tables must
contain the same attributes. Union is denoted by a symbol that looks like an uppercase
U.
