Geography
360
Sample Problem Set:
Data, Central Tendency
1. A physical geographer would like to construct a data set to
help with the analysis of deposition in a small watershed. In particular, she is interested in the
run-off from types of landuse. Of the
following examples of data, identify their type (nominal, ordinal, interval,
ratio). Compare the possible use of
each (what does each data type allow the geographer to do?) and suggest
possible costs of collecting each set of data.
A. Use
results of repeated measurements of run-off at a sample of sites representing
high density urban, low density urban, agriculture, recreation, and forested
landuses.
B. Classify
areas as high density urban, low density urban, agriculture, recreation, and
forested land.
C. Classify
areas on a scale of 1 to 5 according to land use, with 1 having the highest and
5 the lowest run-off rates according to published studies.
D. Rank
sample sites according to scores attained by summing characteristics of slope,
vegetative cover, and soil type each rated on a scale of 1 to 5 as a factor of
run-off.
2. Calculate the mean and median income for Latin America
based on the average incomes for each of the countries provided below. Compare the figures. Which would a World Bank employee use to
show the impact of development projects in the region? Which would a resident of the region use to
argue for additional foreign aid? Do
these values provide a good assessment of wealth in the region (considering on
the values provided and not distributive issues within countries)?
GDP per
Capita (PPP US$)
|
|
Argentina |
12,377 |
|
|
Bolivia |
2,424 |
|
|
Brazil |
7,625 |
|
|
Chile |
9,417 |
|
|
Colombia |
6,248 |
|
|
Ecuador |
3,203 |
|
|
Paraguay |
4,426 |
|
|
Peru |
4,799 |
|
|
Uruguay |
9,035 |
|
|
Venezuela |
5,794 |
3. The following data provides an assessment of conditions of democracy
in the countries of Central America. Values
are given as 1 = free; 2 = almost free; 3 = not free. How would you rate the data in regard to accuracy, precision, and
viability? Why might there be only
three categories in which to place countries?
The publication also gave regional averages for each year (Caribbean 1.4, 1.4, 1.4, 1.4,
1.4, 1.4, 1.4, 1.3, 1.3, 1.3, 1.4). Do
you think that, given the type of data, these averages were appropriate?
|
|
2001 |
1991 |
1992 |
1993 |
1994 |
1995 |
1996 |
1997 |
1998 |
1999 |
2000 |
|
Antigua & Barbuda |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
|
Bahamas |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
Barbados |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
Belize |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
Cuba |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
|
Dominica |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
Dominican Republic |
1 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
Grenada |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
Guyana |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
Haiti |
3 |
3 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
3 |
3 |
|
Jamaica |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
St. Kitts & Nevis |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
St. Lucia |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
St. Vincent & Grenadines |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
Suriname |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
|
Trinidad & Tobago |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|