Tinkerplots IVCarryn Bellomo

Carryn.Bellomo@unlv.edu

What Tinkerplots Does Helps you see trends and patterns in data. Helps you make graphs and reports to

present findings. There are sample data sets, or you can

enter your own data (collected in class or on the internet).

Presentation Overview Overview of Tinkerplots (cat data) Entering Data Manually (finding Pi) Data from the Web (housing prices) Another Example (heaviest backpacks) Using DASL (education levels) Interesting Datasets

Factors Number properties

OverviewCat Dataset

Overview – Cat DatasetOpen Tinkerplots with “Cats,” located under

“Science and Nature” At the top left you have data cards, 1 card

for each data point. Attributes are assigned to each data point,

they can be continuous or discrete. By default, data points are randomly

arranged on the page.

Overview – Button Explanations Stack arranges them in a line. Order arranges them numerically or by

category. Label puts their name next to the icon. The “Mix up button” randomly places the

icons on the screen.

Overview – Arranging Data We want to arrange the cats by weight. Let’s order the cats by weight, and put their

names by their icon: Click on the weight attribute Click on the order button, then click on the stack

button Then click on the name attribute, and then the

label key Who is the heaviest, the lightest?

Overview – Grouping Data Let’s make a bar graph of the cats with their

body length: Select the body length attribute Pull an icon right to separate the data, and

continue to pull on them until they are fully separated

Then stack them, and change the icon if you like to “fused rectangular”

What do you notice about the data?

Overview – Further Analyzing There seem to be two clusters of cats

regarding body length. Perhaps this is related to age or gender? Click on the attribute for age. Does there seem

to be a relationship? Click on the attribute for gender. Does there

seem to be a relationship?

How can you tell?

Overview – Further Analyzing Separate the males and females by

selecting the gender attribute and dragging one of the icons up.

Click on the button to see the mean, and the button for a reference line.

What can you conclude?

Overview – Further Analyzing Perhaps body length is related to weight?

Click on the body length attribute, and pull right to fully separate the data

Click on the weight attribute, and pull up to fully separate the data

What do you think about the relationship between body weight and length?

Entering Data Manually

Finding Pi

Entering Data Manually Students can collect data, which you can

enter manually. Open Tinkerplots Choose “new” from the file menu Click and drag a table into the screen Enter column titles:

Object Circumference, and Diameter

Entering Data Manually Enter the following data:

Entering Data Manually Let’s determine if there is a relationship

between circumference and diameter Click on the attribute for diameter and drag it to

the horizontal axis. Click on the attribute for circumference and drag

it to the vertical axis. Fully separate the data

Is there a relationship? How can you tell?

Entering Data Manually We suspect that Circumference/Diameter would

be a constant value. Let’s add another column with this calculation.

In the table, add a new column heading. Right click on this heading, and click “Edit Formula” Under attributes, find “Circumference” double click on it. Click on the division symbol Double click on “Diameter” Click “OK”

What have we learned about this relationship?

Data from the WebPopulation of Las Vegas

Data from the Web We can find data on housing at

http://www.city-data.com/housing/houses-Las-Vegas-Nevada.html

Go to the site above, and find “Estimate of home value of owner-occupied houses in 2000.”

We will reproduce the graph you see below the data table.

Data from the Web Get the data into Tinkerplots

Open a new file Drag out a set of datacards Click on “Edit” in the menu, then “Paste Cases”

What happened?

Data from the Web We need to format the data so it enters

correctly. This can be done in a variety of formats,

the easiest is probably notepad. The format below will allow you to paste:

Data from the Web Drag “Price” to the horizontal axis. Click on the attribute for “total” and then

change the icon to “value bar vertical”. If the items are not ordered correctly. You

can change the order by clicking on the label and dragging left or right.

What kinds of questions can you answer with this dataset?

Another ExampleHeaviest Backpacks

Heaviest Backpacks Here we will explore the backpack weights

of students The data cards given have information on

First name of student Gender of student Grade level of student Weight of student in pounds Weight of student’s backpack in pounds

Heaviest Backpacks Open “Heaviest Backpacks.tp”

Located in: Data and Demos Exploring Data Starters

What kind of relationships do we expect to find?

How should we organize the data?

Heaviest Backpacks

Investigate the Data: Is there a relationship between packweight

and grade? Compare the means. Do girls tend to carry lighter backpacks

than boys? Does a person who weighs more carry a

heavier pack?

Using DASLEducation Levels

Using DASL The Data and Story Library is a great reference

to use with your classes. For the main menu, go to

http://lib.stat.cmu.edu/DASL/ To find the dataset for Education, follow:

“List all topics” “Education” “#4 Educational Attainment”

This is the story behind the data. Click on “Education by Age” to see the dataset.

Using DASLGet the data into Tinkerplots: Highlight the data on the webpage

(including column titles) Copy the data by holding down the Control

key and pressing C Go to a blank page in Tinkerplots Pull out a stack of data cards Go to Edit, then Paste Cases

Using DASL

Investigate the Data to Answer: For 1984, what age group has the most

people with 4+ years of college? What age group has the most high school

dropouts? To what social events can you attribute to

these patterns?

Using DASLWe would like a frequency distribution: Arrange the data by age group along the

horizontal (put the categories in order). Click on the attribute for count, and change

the icon to “value bar vertical”. Then click on the “Education” attribute. Click on “key” so you can clearly see

categories.

Using DASL Just because a group has the “most”

doesn’t take into account the size of the population.

How can this skew our analysis and what should we do to correct for it?

Using DASL

Calculate the percentage for each category Calculate the total number of people in

each age group. Divide each “Count” by the “Totals” found

above. Multiply by 100%.

Using DASL Make another frequency distribution by

category. Do the answers to our questions change for

this particular problem?

Interesting DatasetsFactors

Interesting Datasets – Factors This dataset/activity explores patterns

related to multiplication. The datacards contain properties of the

numbers 1 to 100. Open “Factors.tp”

Located in: Data and Demos Exploring Data Starters

Interesting Datasets – Factors When we resize the plot to make it 3 units

wide and click on the “factor 3” attribute, what do we notice?

What is the generalization to this?

Interesting Datasets – Factors When we think of the division problem

, we know 3 groups of 8 make 24. This can be simulated by making a stack 8

units wide. Clicking on the “factor 8” attribute, find 24. We see it is evenly divisible and the result is the 3rd row!

Or, make the stack 24 wide (keep “factor 8” attribute selected). What do you notice?

24 8 3

Interesting Datasets – Factors Experiment with this dataset on your own. What other patterns do you notice that

could help your students?

The file “Exploring Data.pdf” located in the “Tinkerplots Help” directory has a guided activity for you to use in your classroom.

Interesting DatasetsNumber Properties

Interesting Datasets – No. Properties This dataset/activity explores number

properties such as perfect squares, and prime numbers.

The datacards contain properties of the numbers 1 to 100.

Open “Number Properties.tp”Located in: Data and Demos Exploring Data Starters

Interesting Datasets – No. Properties

What kind of patterns do you notice with your plot 4 wide and the “perfect_square” attribute selected?

What other plot sizes give you good patterns for squares?

Interesting Datasets – No. Properties

Select the “prime” attribute. What are some possible patterns with

prime numbers?

Try It Yourself ! Investigate a topic that interests you

This could be data from the internet, or Design a lesson with data you can collect with

your students

Share with us your ideas!

Conclusion This presentation and handouts can be

found at:

http://www.unlv.edu/faculty/bellomo