UNITED STAT

ES CENSUS

BUREAU

A N S WE R S T

O QU A N T I T

AT I VE Q

U E S T I ON S –

O N L I NE .

HOW MANY?

BY: ERIN STONER

WHO’S USING IT?The online US Census Bureau is a resource available for public use. The information it

pertains would be appropriate for all ages. It is more likely an adult would use it.

United States Census Bureau

HOW DO I GET THERE? http://www.census.gov/en.html

WHAT IS THE RESOURCE?

THE BASICS

IS IT ACCESSIBLE? USER FRIENDLY? EASY TO READ?

This resource is very interactive and functions and reacts as modern websites are expected to react. Users will find it very easy to go from one part of this page to another very intuitively. The content is described or the general user. You don’t need very much prior knowledge to understand. The information is well organized and the site offers a wide variety of formats to visualize the data it contains.

The above picture is of the U.S. Census Bureau’s homepage navigation bar. Each of the white printed menu items has a drop down to additional options. There is also a slideshow for current news articles.

PREREQUISITES The user needs to understand the basic vocabulary involved with navigating the site.Specifically, the difference between census and population,Census: an official enumeration of the population, with details as to age, sex, occupation,

etc. Population: the total number of persons inhabiting a country, city, or any district or area.

What is an..Infographic: a visual presentation of information in the form of a chart, graph, or other

image accompanied by minimal text, intended to give an easily understood overview, often of a complex subject

And how do you read that?The user would need a basic understanding of how to read graphs and charts, if he/she

wants to use the “Library” section. And, of course, the user needs to know the basics of navigating modern websites.

Source: www.dictionary.com/

WHAT ELSE IS ON CENSUS.GOV?Topics that you can research on this resources

include: • Population• Economy• Business• Education• Health• Emergency Preparedness• Employment• Families and Living Arrangements• Housing• Income and Poverty• International Trade• Public Sector

It’s a lot more than population info!

OTHER TYPES OF QUESTIONS YOU CAN ANSWER

What is the average salary of someone in Texas?What percent of the Washington state population graduated from high

school in 2010?What is the most common nationality of an Illinois resident?What emergency procedures are in place near the Gulf of Mexico?How many people are married by state catagorized by “age, sex, and

personal earning?” (http://www.census.gov/hhes/families/data/cps2015A.html)

How many people have attained a higher education degree from Utah in 2010?

How many of a certain race, sex, age or nationality had attained a higher education degree from New Mexico?

*** You can find very specific, narrowed down, information easily using this resource.

“HOW TO” GUIDE:1. When you first go to www.census.gov, you will see this:

Each of the bold, white categories across the top are drop down menus.2. Hover your mouse over the basic category you are interested in exploring. 3. Click the option that most closely matches your inquiry. Try out different

sections. Some of the information available is repeated in different formats. One of the more visual formats might more closely match your learning style.

For the sake of our demonstration, I am going to look at how to find the population of Rhode Island during the last U.S. Census.

1. Click Topics Population Population Main

POPULATION OF RHODE ISLAND:

Using the picture on the last slide… I’ll zoom into the part we want.

On the left side of the page, is the “meat and potatoes” of data. The topics that come up in the middle lead to current news articles about that topic.

1. Click on “Data.”2. Click on “Current Population

Estimates.”3. Choose if you want the “Total

Population” or “Population by age, sex, race, and Hispanic origin”

(Next slide for image)

Click “Click Population Estimates:”

Then it takes you to …

http://www.census.gov/topics/population/data.html

http://www.census.gov/popest/data/index.html

On the “Current Population Estimates” page, you will see these links.

For our purposes, I am going to use the “States” row and choose the “Population by age, sex, race and Hispanic origin” option so we can see all the available data.

When you click on that link “v2015” it takes you to these links to data tables. Each bullet leads to a different data breakdown. While this information is interesting, it is not helping us find the population of Rhode Island.

Go back to http://www.census.gov/popest/data/index.html Or press back until you reach the Current Estimates Data options table (below):

Click on the one right above the one we just explored, this one is: States Total Population V2015

You will see these options. Select: “Annual Estimates of the Residential Population for the United States…” American Fact Finder

TA DA!When you select this link, you will be directed to the American Fact Finder page,

where there is a large spreadsheet containing all the states population data (the most recent U.S. census was in 2010) and estimates of how that population has grown since the last census.

Rhode Island’s Population in 2010: 1,052,567

Projected Population in 2015: 1,056,298

http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?src=bkmk

IS THIS FOR REAL?The information found on the U.S. Census Bureau’s website is derived

from the United States Census information. They have collected this information by gathering every person’s data who was living in the U.S. during the 2010 Census. This information was then manipulated and combined to show different trends and demographics occurring historically. This is a government funded and regulated project with protected data and information. Only specific users with the necessary privileges are allowed to edit the content on this site.

In other words, you can trust this data to the best of our knowledge.

FEEL FREE TO REACH OUT!There is obviously A TON more you can do on the United States Census

Bureau website. This was a general overview of how to find a state’s population from an authoritative reference source. …Because, you never know about that first answer on Google.

Please feel free to contact me with any further questions about this, or any of our other reference tools.

How to reach me: Erin Stoner, Library AssociatePhone: (708) 343-3391Email: stonere@mpplibrary.org

Melrose Park Public Library801 N. 19th Ave. Melrose Park, IL 60160