Information Systems/Databases

< Information Systems

This lesson covers databases.

Objectives and Skills

Objectives and skills for the databases portion of CLEP Information Systems include:^[1]

Database management systems (data warehousing, data mining, networking, security, validation, migration, storage, obsolescence)
Database management systems (relational, hierarchical, network, management strategies)

Readings

Read Wikibooks: Introduction to Computer Information Systems/Database.
Read Wikipedia: Database.
Read Wikipedia: Data warehouse.
Read Wikipedia: Data mining.
Read Wikipedia: Relational model.
Read Wikipedia: Hierarchical database model.

Multimedia

Activities

Complete one or more of the following database tutorials:
Complete A Quick-Start Tutorial on Relational Database Design.
Review QCI: Database vs. Spreadsheet and PC Magazine: Spreadsheet Does Not = Database. Identify spreadsheets you use at work, school, or home that should be implemented as databases instead. If you are responsible for the data, try creating a database as a replacement. If someone else is responsible for the data, discuss with them the advantages of using a database.
Review Wikipedia: Website visitor tracking and Wikipedia: Personalization. Consider that nearly every website you visit uses a database to track page requests, and many websites use databases and browser cookies to track individual users. If you visit a website and recognize that it has been personalized in some way based on your previous activity on the site or elsewhere on the Internet, that site has or has shared a database with your information. Make a list of the sites you visit on a daily or weekly basis that have a record of your information. Then search the Internet for how to view cookies in your browser and then check your browser cookies to see how many sites are tracking you that you weren't even aware of.
Review the lesson summary, key terms, review questions, and assessments below.

Lesson Summary

A database is an organized collection of data, including schemas, tables, queries, reports, views and other objects.^[2]
A database management system (DBMS) is a computer software application that interacts with the user, other applications, and the database itself to capture and analyze data.^[3]
A general-purpose DBMS is designed to allow the definition, creation, querying, update, and administration of databases.^[4]
Because of the close relationship between them, the term "database" is often used casually to refer to both a database and the DBMS used to manipulate it.^[5]
A data warehouse is a central repository of integrated data from one or more disparate sources used for reporting and data analysis.^[6]
Data mining is the computational process of discovering patterns in large data sets involving methods at the intersection of artificial intelligence, machine learning, statistics, and database systems.^[7]
A relational database management system (RDBMS) is a database management system (DBMS) that is based on the relational model.^[8] The relational model represents data terms of ordered sets of elements (tuples), grouped into relations (tables).^[9]^[10]
A hierarchical database model is a data model in which the data is organized into a tree-like structure. The data is stored as records which are connected to one another through links. A record is a collection of fields, with each field containing only one value. The entity type of a record defines which fields the record contains.^[11]
The network model is a database model conceived as a flexible way of representing objects and their relationships. Its distinguishing feature is that the schema, viewed as a graph in which object types are nodes and relationship types are arcs, is not restricted to being a hierarchy or lattice.^[12]
Management strategies include registering and monitoring users, enforcing data security, monitoring performance, maintaining data integrity, dealing with concurrency control, and recovering information that has been corrupted by some event such as an unexpected system failure.^[13]

Key Terms

centralized database: A database that is located, stored, and maintained in a single location.^[14]
client / server: A distributed application structure that partitions tasks or workloads between the providers of a resource or service and service requesters.^[15]
data cleansing: The process of detecting and correcting or removing corrupt or inaccurate records from a record set, table, or database.^[16]
data mining: The computational process of discovering patterns in large data sets involving methods at the intersection of artificial intelligence, machine learning, statistics, and database systems.^[17]
data warehouse: A central repository of integrated data from one or more disparate sources used for reporting and data analysis.^[18]
database administrator (DBA): The role responsible for installation, configuration, design, migration, capacity planning, performance monitoring, security, troubleshooting, as well as backup and recovery of a database or databases.^[19]
database model: Determines the logical structure of a database and fundamentally determines in which manner data can be stored, organized, and manipulated.^[20]
database schema: The structure of a database described in a formal language supported by the database management system.^[21]
dirty data: Inaccurate, incomplete or erroneous data, especially in a computer system or database.^[22]
distributed database: A database in which portions of the database are stored on multiple computers within a network.^[23]
export: The act or process of retrieving data out of data sources for further data processing or data storage (data migration).^[24]
field: A column or attribute of a record in a relational database.^[25]
geographical information system (GIS): A system designed to capture, store, manipulate, analyze, manage, and present all types of spatial or geographical data.^[26]
import: The act or process of loading data into a data source.^[27]
migration: The process of transferring data between storage types, formats, or computer systems.^[28]
multidimensional database: A database which uses aggregated, inter-related arrays to organize data and express the relationships between data and is used for online analytical processing.^[29]
object oriented database: A database management system in which information is represented in the form of combinations of variables, functions, and data structures.^[30]^[31]
query: A precise request for information retrieval with database and information systems.^[32]
record: A row or collection of attributes in a relational database.^[33]
table: A collection of related data held in a structured format within a database.^[34]
XML (Extensible Markup Language): A markup language that defines a set of rules for encoding data in a format which is both human-readable and machine-readable.^[35]

Review Questions

A database is _____.

A database is an organized collection of data, including schemas, tables, queries, reports, views and other objects.
A database management system (DBMS) is _____.

A database management system (DBMS) is a computer software application that interacts with the user, other applications, and the database itself to capture and analyze data.
A general-purpose DBMS is designed to _____.

A general-purpose DBMS is designed to allow the definition, creation, querying, update, and administration of databases.
Because of the close relationship between them, the term "database" is often used casually to refer to _____.

Because of the close relationship between them, the term "database" is often used casually to refer to both a database and the DBMS used to manipulate it.
A data warehouse is _____.

A data warehouse is a central repository of integrated data from one or more disparate sources used for reporting and data analysis.
Data mining is _____.

Data mining is the computational process of discovering patterns in large data sets involving methods at the intersection of artificial intelligence, machine learning, statistics, and database systems.
A relational database management system (RDBMS) is _____.

A relational database management system (RDBMS) is a database management system (DBMS) that is based on the relational model. The relational model represents data terms of ordered sets of elements (tuples), grouped into relations (tables).
A hierarchical database model is _____.

A hierarchical database model is a data model in which the data is organized into a tree-like structure. The data is stored as records which are connected to one another through links. A record is a collection of fields, with each field containing only one value. The entity type of a record defines which fields the record contains.
The network model is _____.

The network model is a database model conceived as a flexible way of representing objects and their relationships. Its distinguishing feature is that the schema, viewed as a graph in which object types are nodes and relationship types are arcs, is not restricted to being a hierarchy or lattice.
Management strategies include _____.

Management strategies include registering and monitoring users, enforcing data security, monitoring performance, maintaining data integrity, dealing with concurrency control, and recovering information that has been corrupted by some event such as an unexpected system failure.

Assessments

Flashcards: Quizlet: Information Systems - Databases
Quiz: Quizlet: Information Systems - Databases

References

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