1. Understanding and Describing Data

Activity 1.01: Classifying a New Dataset

Solution:

1. The unit of observation is a car sale.
2. Date and Sales Amount are quantitative, while Make is qualitative.

While there could be many ways to convert Make into numeric data, one commonly accepted method would be to map each of the Make types to a number. For instance, Ford could map to 1, Honda could map to 2, Mazda could map to 3, Toyota could map to 4, Mercedes could map to 5, and Chevy could map to 6.

Activity 1.02: Exploring Dealership Sales Data

Solution:

1. Open Microsoft Excel to a blank workbook.
2. Go to the Data tab and click on Get Data | From File | From Text/CSV.
3. Find the path to the dealerships.csv file and click on Import.
4. In the file import window, click on Load. The following table is what you will see when the file loads.

Figure 1.38: The dealerships.csv file loaded

A histogram of the results may vary a little...