Working with Numbers and DataLori Rottenberg

INTO MasonCore 4

Cardinal and Ordinal Numbers

Say these sentences:

1. The researchers surveyed 2,395 households.2. There was a problem with the 896th survey.3. Their goal is to get data from at least 2,500,000 households.4. They are the 62nd research team to try that approach.

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Notice where the comma is placed: after thousands, millions, and billions.

Notice the word endings and how the 1-20 pattern repeats as numbers get bigger. You only have to worry about the last digit’s ending!

Fractions

http://koreabridge.net/post/my-fractions-study-guide-foreignerjoy

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Types of Representations of Data

Pie Charts

Pie charts allow us to see numbers represented visually as part of a whole (100%). They are described using fractions or percentages.

50%

25%

17%

8%

Sales by Quarter

1st Qtr2nd Qtr3rd Qtr4th Qtr

Bar Graphs

Bar graphs allow us to easily make comparisons between different groups of things. We must describe the labels for both the horizontal and vertical axes.

1st Qtr

2nd Qtr

3rd Qtr

4th Qtr

0.00% 10.00% 20.00% 30.00% 40.00% 50.00% 60.00%

50.00%

25.00%

33.33%

16.67%

Sales by Quarter

Percent

Line Graphs3

Line graphs allow us to easily see changes over time. We must describe the labels for both the horizontal and vertical axes.

1st Qtr 2nd Qtr 3rd Qtr 4th Qtr0.00%

10.00%

20.00%

30.00%

40.00%

50.00%

60.00%

50.00%

25.00%

33.33%

16.67%

Sales by Quarter

Percent

Tables

Tables are just small spreadsheets. They are simple representations of data often seen in scientific journals.

Number PercentQuarter 1 6 50%Quarter 2 3 25%Quarter 3 4 33.33%Quarter 4 1 16.67%

Diagrams

Diagrams are pictures that show processes or data in a more visual way.

How to Describe Pie Charts

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The pie chart is primarily used to illustrate how different parts make up a whole. The best way to present your data in a pie chart is to compare the categories with each other. The following comparison words can be used:

to compare compared to as opposed to versus more than the majority of only a small minority/a large majority greater than less than twice as many/much one-third as many/much the largest/the smallest/the next largest the most/the least

Here we have an example of a pie chart that represents how internet users aged 16+ prefer to browse the web:

This example demonstrates the best way to summarize data by selecting and reporting the main features. Remember to give the main idea of a chart first, then point out its interesting details.

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https://preply.com/en/blog/2018/08/17/charts-graphs-and-diagrams-in-the-presentation/

How to Describe Other Charts

Bar and line graphs need different types of words, shown below, but the principle is the same as for pie charts. Describe the overall idea of what the chart is trying to show first. Then describe the major categories and any major findings or trends. Then discuss the possible implications of the data if applicable.

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Positive to climb - a climb to ascend - an ascent to rise - a rise to improve - an improvement to recover - a recover to increase - an increase to spike – a spike to jump – a jump to go up

Negative to fall - a fall to decline - a decline to plunge - a plunge to decrease - a decrease to worsen - a slip to deteriorate - a dip to drop – a drop to go down to lose – a loss

Data Movement to fluctuate (often with “wildly”) - a fluctuation to continue to remain the same to hold steady to reach to approach

Predicting Future Movement to project - a projection to forecast - a forecast to predict - a prediction

Rates of Change—Adjectives and Adverbs slight - slightly = insignificant sharp - sharply = quick, large movement abrupt - abruptly = sudden change rapid - rapidly = quick, very fast sudden - suddenly = without warning dramatic - dramatically = extreme, very big gradual - gradually = slow change over time flat = without change over time steady - steadily = very little change over time major/minor = a lot/a little change

Beare, Kenneth. "How to Discuss Charts and Graphs in English." ThoughtCo, Feb. 11, 2020, thoughtco.com/language-of-graphs-and-charts-1210184.

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Presenting Visuals: Useful Phrases and Vocabulary

As you will see from this graph ... I'd like to show you this chart on which you will see ... Let me draw your attention to this part of the graph. Let's look more closely at this month's figures. This figure refers to the sales in China only. This pie chart shows our share of the European market today. As you can see, our main competitor has an even bigger share. The bar chart represents sales in our Asian outlets. Here you can see a comparison between ... On the line graph you will note:

o a strong upward trend in the sales of product A ... despite occasional fluctuations ... with a slight drop during the holiday season ... with occasional variations due to ...

o the overall performance of product B is good. The initial surge in sales was followed by a period of slower growth in the

second half of the year. The instant success of the product was followed by a period of stability in

the level of sales.

Commenting trends - useful phrases:

Increases : o a slight/constant/marked/substantial/increase in saleso an increase of about/roughly/approximately/in the region of ... %o a little over/above what we predictedo the recovery/upturn began in (month)o an overall increase in ...o an upward trend in the demand for ...o sales reached record levels / reached a peak in (month)o a strong surge in the sales of ...o by (month), the figure had risen to ...o we predict that sales will soar in the coming year / over the next ... months

Decreases : o just under our targeto way below our expectationso a slight / notable / significant decrease in ...o the downturn began in (month)o the situation began to deteriorate in (month)o the number has continued to fall

Fluctuations : o a slow start developed into steady progress in saleso an initial upward trend was followed by ...o we note slight fluctuations through the year

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o normal seasonal variations are the cause of occasional downward trendso sales have been (rather) irregularo the level / the rate has been unstable since ...o you will note a certain instability in the rate of ...

Conclusions - useful phrases:

We must focus our attention on ... What I suggest is ... There is a necessity for ... We need more ... We have no choice but to ... Appropriate measures must be taken The only option we have is to ... These changes are inevitable. We will have to revise our estimation. The result / outcome will be ... I strongly recommend ... To conclude, I am happy / I regret to announce that ...

https://learn-english-today.com/business-english/graphs-charts.html

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Bar Chart Report:

The bar chart shows the caloric intake of UK males in three distinct age groups of 0-24, 25-49, and over 50 years old.

Dairy for the 0-24 age group was the highest source of calories, while the other categories each represented about 20% each. In the next age group dairy fell to around a quarter, and meat became the main source of calories, reaching half of the total intake.

Pulses and vegetables reached 10% and 15% respectively. Pulses in the final age group increased six fold to over 60%, whereas calories obtained from vegetables was 10%, half that of meat (20%), and even slightly less than dairy (15%).

The 50+ group shows the most marked preference out of all the groups. It also confirms the gradual decline in vegetable consumption as males become older.

Overall, it is clear that each age group has a clear favorite which varies depending on age. However, vegetables are consistently among the least popular, regardless of age.

https://www.ieltspodcast.com/ielts-writing-task/ielts-academic-writing-task-1/how-to-describe-a-bar-graph/#2eohtdabc

Resourceshttps://eslflow.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Describing_graphs_vocabulary_elementary_worksheet-2018.pdf

https://eslflow.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Describing_Graphs_vocabulary-_graph_matching.pdf

https://eslflow.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Describing-graphs-making-sentences-2018z.pdf

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