Tinkerplots IVCarryn Bellomo
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
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