What is data?

• Data


  One or more values that can be assigned to an object
• Data can assume any form – numbers, characters, pieces of text, pictures or sounds
• Data has no context
• Data


  • 8848 metres
• Data, on its own, isn't very useful
• Information


  Data placed within a context to make it meaningful
• Information


  • According to my Fitbit, we have just walked 8848 metres.
  • Towering 8848 metres above sea level, Mount Everest is the tallest mountain on Earth.
• Computer programs process data
• Computer programs transform data into information by imposing structure on data to make it meaningful to human beings
• Values are familiar from everyday life – names, prices and titles of books or movies are examples of values
• Objects aren't just physical entities that we are used to in everyday life (such as a mountain, person, city, and so on), but can also be virtual, without a physical existence (e.g. a character in a novel or tomorrow's weather forecast)
• Traditionally data is always used as a plural noun
• Computer scientists, as well as almost all journalists, tend to treat data as a singular noun
• Either form is acceptable, but it is crucial to be consistent in your writing