Chapter 6 Notes
Tuesday, 28 April 2026 11:04 AM
Short Questions:
1. "An effective information system provides users with accurate, timely, and relevant information"- Explain.
(p245)
An effective information system provides users with accurate, timely, and relevant information. Accurate
information is free of errors. Information is timely when it is available to decision makers when it is needed.
Information is relevant when it is useful and appropriate for the types of work and decisions that require it.
However, many businesses don't have timely, accurate, or relevant information because the data in their
information systems have been poorly organized and maintained. That's why data management is so essential.
To understand the problem, we need to look at how information systems arrange data in computer files and
traditional methods of file management.
2. Briefly describe the components of the data hierarchy. (Fig. 6.1, p 246)
A computer system organizes data in a hierarchy that starts with the bit, which represents either a 0 or a 1. Bits
can be grouped to form a byte to represent one character, number, or symbol. Bytes can be grouped to form a
field, and related fields can be grouped to form a record. Related records can be collected to form a file, and
related files can be organized into a database.
More specifically, a bit represents the smallest unit of data a computer can handle. A group of bits, called a
byte, represents a single character, which can be a letter, a number, or another symbol. A grouping of characters
into a word, a group of words, or a complete number (such as a person's name or age) is called a field. A group
of related fields, such as the student's name, the course taken, the date, and the grade, comprises a record. A
group of records of the same type is called a file.
3. List the problems with traditional file environment. (p 247-248)
Data Redundancy and Inconsistency: Data redundancy is the presence of duplicate data in multiple data files
so that the same data are stored in more than one place or location. Data redundancy occurs when different
groups in an organization independently collect the same piece of data and store it independently of each other.
Data redundancy wastes storage resources and also leads to data inconsistency, where the same attribute may
have different values.
Program-Data Dependence: Program-data dependence refers to the coupling of data stored in files and the
specific programs required to update and maintain those files, such that changes in programs require changes to
the data.
Lack of Flexibility: A traditional file system can deliver routine scheduled reports after extensive programming
efforts, but it cannot deliver ad hoc reports or respond to unanticipated information requirements in a timely
fashion.
Poor Security: Because there is little control or management of data, access to and dissemination of
information may be out of control.
have different values.
Program-Data Dependence: Program-data dependence refers to the coupling of data stored in files and the
specific programs required to update and maintain those files, such that changes in programs require changes to
the data.
Lack of Flexibility: A traditional file system can deliver routine scheduled reports after extensive programming
efforts, but it cannot deliver ad hoc reports or respond to unanticipated information requirements in a timely
fashion.
Poor Security: Because there is little control or management of data, access to and dissemination of
information may be out of control.
Lack of Data Sharing and Availability: Because pieces of information in different files and different parts of
the organization cannot be related to one another, it is virtually impossible for information to be shared or
accessed in a timely manner.
4. What is a database? What is DBMS? (p 248-249)
A database is a collection of data organized to serve many applications efficiently by centralizing the data and
controlling redundant data.
A database management system (DBMS) is software that enables an organization to centralize data, manage
them efficiently, and provide access to the stored data by application programs. The DBMS acts as an interface
between application programs and the physical data files.
5. How does a DBMS solve the problems of the traditional file environment? (p 249)
A DBMS reduces data redundancy and inconsistency by minimizing isolated files in which the same data are
repeated. The DBMS may not enable the organization to eliminate data redundancy entirely, but it can help
control redundancy. Even if the organization maintains some redundant data, using a DBMS eliminates data
inconsistency because the DBMS can help the organization ensure that every occurrence of redundant data has
the same values.
The DBMS uncouples programs and data, enabling data to stand on their own. The description of the data used
by the program does not have to be specified in detail each time a different program is written. Access and
availability of information will be increased, and program development and maintenance costs reduced, because
users and programmers can perform ad hoc queries of the database for many simple applications without having
to write complicated programs.
The DBMS enables the organization to centrally manage data, their use, and security. Data sharing throughout
the organization is easier because the data are presented to users as being in a single location rather than
fragmented in many different systems and files.
6. Define the followings:
Relational DBMS, Primary Key, Relational DBMS (p 250)
A relational DBMS represents data as two-dimensional tables (called relations). These tables make it easy to
organize, retrieve, and relate data across the system.
Each table in a relational database has one field that is designated as its primary key. This field uniquely
identifies each record in the table and cannot be duplicated in another record.
When a primary key field from one table appears in another table, it is called a foreign key, and it essentially
serves as a lookup field to look up data about a related entry. For example, when the field Supplier_Number
appears in the PART table, it is called a foreign key and is used to look up data about the supplier of a specific
part.
7. Data Definition, Data Dictionary, SQL (p 253),
A DBMS has a data definition capability to specify the structure and content of the database. It is used to
create database tables and to define the characteristics of the fields in each table.
A data dictionary is an automated or manual file that stores definitions of data elements and their
characteristics. Microsoft Access has a rudimentary data dictionary capability that displays information about
the name, description, size, type, format, and other properties of each field in a table.
SQL (Structured Query Language) is the standard language used to query and manipulate data in relational
databases. It allows users to retrieve, insert, update, and delete data using straightforward command-based
queries.
8. Normalization (p 255), Non-relational DBMS (p 257), Distributed Database (p 257)
Normalization is the process of creating small, stable, yet flexible and adaptive data structures from complex
groups of data. It helps eliminate redundancy and ensures data integrity across the database.
Non-relational DBMS (also known as NoSQL) use a more flexible data model and are designed for managing
large data sets across many distributed machines and for easily scaling up or down. They are particularly suited
for handling unstructured or rapidly changing data.
A distributed database is one that is stored in multiple physical locations. Parts or copies of the database are
physically stored in one location, while other parts or copies are maintained in other locations. This allows
organizations to store data closer to where it is used while still maintaining a unified system.
9. What is Blockchain? How does it work? (p 257-258)
Blockchain is a distributed database technology that enables firms and organizations to create and verify
transactions on a network nearly instantaneously without a central authority.
The system stores transactions as a distributed ledger among a network of computers. The information held in
the database is continually reconciled by the computers in the network. This means that every participant in the
A distributed database is one that is stored in multiple physical locations. Parts or copies of the database are
physically stored in one location, while other parts or copies are maintained in other locations. This allows
organizations to store data closer to where it is used while still maintaining a unified system.
9. What is Blockchain? How does it work? (p 257-258)
Blockchain is a distributed database technology that enables firms and organizations to create and verify
transactions on a network nearly instantaneously without a central authority.
The system stores transactions as a distributed ledger among a network of computers. The information held in
the database is continually reconciled by the computers in the network. This means that every participant in the
network has access to the same up-to-date records, making it extremely difficult to alter or tamper with any
transaction without the knowledge of all other participants.
10. What are the benefits of using blockchain databases? (p 260)
There are many benefits to firms using blockchain databases. Blockchain networks radically reduce the cost of
verifying users, validating transactions, and the risks of storing and processing transaction information across
thousands of firms. Instead of thousands of firms building their own private transaction systems and then
integrating them with suppliers, shippers, and financial institution systems, blockchain can provide a single,
simple, low-cost transaction system for all participating firms. This leads to greater transparency, efficiency,
and trust across the entire network.
11. What are the '3Vs' of Big Data? (p260) Why are businesses interested in big data? (p 262)
Big data is often characterized by the "3Vs": the extreme volume of data, the wide variety of data types and
sources, and the velocity at which data must be processed.
Businesses are interested in big data because large datasets can reveal more patterns and interesting
relationships than smaller data sets, with the potential to provide new insights into customer behavior, weather
patterns, financial market activity, or other phenomena. For example, Shutterstock, the global online image
marketplace, stores 24 million images, adding 10,000 more each day. To find ways to optimize the buying
experience, Shutterstock analyzes its big data to find out where its website visitors place their cursors and how
long they hover over an image before making a purchase.
12. Define Data Warehouse, Data Mart, Hadoop (p 263)
A data warehouse is a database that stores current and historical data of potential interest to decision makers
throughout the company. It consolidates data from multiple sources into a single, unified repository that
supports analysis and reporting.
A data mart is a subset of a data warehouse in which a summarized or highly focused portion of the
organization's data is placed in a separate database for a specific population of users. It allows departments or
teams to access only the data most relevant to their needs.
Hadoop is an open source software framework managed by the Apache Software Foundation that enables
distributed parallel processing of huge amounts of data across inexpensive computers. It is used for handling
unstructured and semi-structured data in vast quantities, as well as structured data. Hadoop breaks a big data
problem down into sub-problems, distributes them among up to thousands of inexpensive computer processing
nodes, and then combines the result into a smaller data set that is easier to analyze.
13. Draw the diagram of contemporary Business In
telligence Infrastructure. (Fig 6.13, p 265)
14. Define OLAP, Data Mining, Text Mining.
Online Analytical Processing (OLAP) supports multidimensional data analysis, enabling users to view the
same data in different ways using multiple dimensions. Each aspect of information — product, pricing, cost,
region, or time period — represents a different dimension. For example, a product manager could use a
multidimensional data analysis tool to learn how many washers were sold in the East in June, how that
compares with the previous month and the previous June, and how it compares with the sales forecast. OLAP
enables users to obtain online answers to ad hoc questions in a fairly rapid amount of time, even when the data
are stored in very large databases.
Data mining provides insights into corporate data that cannot be obtained with OLAP by finding hidden
patterns and relationships in large databases and inferring rules from them to predict future behavior. It goes
Online Analytical Processing (OLAP) supports multidimensional data analysis, enabling users to view the
same data in different ways using multiple dimensions. Each aspect of information — product, pricing, cost,
region, or time period — represents a different dimension. For example, a product manager could use a
multidimensional data analysis tool to learn how many washers were sold in the East in June, how that
compares with the previous month and the previous June, and how it compares with the sales forecast. OLAP
enables users to obtain online answers to ad hoc questions in a fairly rapid amount of time, even when the data
are stored in very large databases.
Data mining provides insights into corporate data that cannot be obtained with OLAP by finding hidden
patterns and relationships in large databases and inferring rules from them to predict future behavior. It goes
beyond simple queries to uncover deeper, often unexpected connections within the data.
Text mining tools are available to help businesses analyze unstructured text data. These tools are able to extract
key elements from unstructured natural language text, discover patterns and relationships, and summarize the
information. They are particularly useful for analyzing emails, social media posts, surveys, and other text-based
sources.
15. Briefly describe each type of information obtainable from data mining. (p 266)
The types of information obtainable from data mining include associations, sequences, classifications, clusters,
and forecasts.
Associations are occurrences linked to a single event. For instance, a study of supermarket purchasing patterns
might reveal that when corn chips are purchased, a cola drink is purchased 65 percent of the time, but when
there is a promotion, cola is purchased 85 percent of the time.
Sequences involve events linked over time. We might find, for example, that if a house is purchased, a new
refrigerator will be purchased within two weeks 65 percent of the time, and an oven will be bought within one
month of the home purchase 45 percent of the time.
Classification recognizes patterns that describe the group to which an item belongs by examining existing items
that have been classified and by inferring a set of rules. For example, businesses such as credit card or telephone
companies use classification to identify customers who may be at risk of leaving.
Clustering works in a manner similar to classification, but is used when no groups have yet been defined. A
data mining tool can discover different groupings within data, such as finding affinity groups for bank cards or
partitioning a database into groups of customers based on demographics and types of personal investments.
Forecasting uses a series of existing values to predict what other values will be. For example, forecasting might
find patterns in data to help managers estimate the future value of continuous variables, such as sales figures.
16. What is Sentiment Analysis? Provide an example. (p 267-268)
Sentiment analysis software is able to mine text comments in an email message, blog, social media
conversation, or survey form to detect favorable and unfavorable opinions about specific subjects. It allows
businesses to understand how customers truly feel about their products, services, or brand.
For example, Kraft Foods uses a Community Intelligence Portal and sentiment analysis to tune into consumer
conversations about its products across numerous social networks, blogs, and other websites. Kraft tries to make
sense of relevant comments rather than just tracking brand mentions, and can identify customers' emotions and
feelings when they talk about how they barbecue and what sauces and spices they use.