Calculations, Visualization

, and Simulation

6

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Chapter Outline

• The Spreadsheet: Software for Simulation and Speculation

• Statistical Software: Beyond Spreadsheets

• Statistics and Data Analysis

• Scientific Visualization

• Calculated Risks: Computer Modeling and Simulation

“The purpose ofcomputation is not numbers but insight.”

R. W. Hamming..

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The Spreadsheet

– Addresses (column letter and row number, e.g., A1, C12)

– Cells (the intersection of a rowand

column)

The spreadsheet consists of:

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The Spreadsheet

Values such as numbers and dates

Spreadsheets can contain:

Labels that explain what a value means, such as column and report headings

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The Spreadsheet

Formulas allow you to create instructions using mathematical expressions and commands

+ (plus)

/ (division)

- (minus) * (multiplication)

Sum Average

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Spreadsheet Features

• Formulas can be relative, so they refer to different cells when they are copied

• Or absolute, so the formula references never change when they are copied When the formula in column

B is copied to column C, it changes relative to the new column.

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Spreadsheet Features

Automatic recalculation

– Any time a change is entered into the spreadsheet, all data related to the change automatically updates.

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Spreadsheet Features

• Functions (e.g., SUM, AVG, SQRT) are used to automate complex calculations

• Macros let you store keystrokes and commands so they can be played back automatically

• Templates offer ready-to-use worksheets with labels and formulas already entered

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Spreadsheet Features

Linking spreadsheets together

When values change in one spreadsheet, all linked spreadsheets update automatically

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Spreadsheet Features

– Search for information

– Sort the data by a specific criteria

– Merge the data with a word processor

– Generate reports

Database capabilities

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“What If?”

• Spreadsheets allow you to change numbers and instantly see the effects of those changes.

– “What if I enter this value?”

• Equation solvers– Some spreadsheets generate data

needed to fit a given equation and target value.

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Spreadsheet Graphics: From Digits to Drawings

• Charts allow you to turn numbers into visual data:

– Pie charts (show relative proportions to the whole)

– Line charts (show trends or relationships over time)

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Spreadsheet Graphics: From Digits to Drawings

– Bar charts (use if data falls into a few categories)

– Scatter charts (use to discover, rather than to display, a relationship between two variables)

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Statistical Software:Beyond Spreadsheets

Accounting and Financial Management software allows you to do electronically handle routine transactions such as:

– writing checks

– balancing accounts

– creating budgets

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Statistical Software:Beyond Spreadsheets

Mathematics Processing software turns abstract mathematical relationships into visual objects.

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Statistical Software: Beyond Spreadsheets

Statistical and data analysis software collects and analyzes data that tests the strength of data relationships.

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Statistical Software: Beyond Spreadsheets

Scientific visualization software uses shape, location in space, color, brightness, and motion to help us visualize data.

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Calculated Risks: Computer Modeling and

Simulation

Computer modeling uses computers to create abstract models of objects, organisms, organizations, and processes

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Computer Modeling and Simulation

Examples:– computer games (chess boards, sports

arenas, and mythological societies)

– computer models of organisms, objects, and organizations

– flight simulators and simulations of science lab activities

– managing a business, city, or nation

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Computer Simulation

Computer Simulations are widely used for research in the physical, biological, and social sciences, and in engineering.

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Computer Modeling and Simulation

Schools, businesses, and the military use simulations for training because:

– Safety: non-threatening environments

– Economy: less expensive than real life

– Projection: less threatening to systems

– Visualization: allows to see and understand

– Replication: allows repetition of projects

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Computer Simulation:The Risks

Risks:

– Simulation isn’t reality.

– Not all factors can be entered into the model or simulation.