Data Analyst
Data analysis is a process of inspecting, cleansing, transforming, and modeling data with the goal of discovering useful information, informing conclusions, and supporting decision-making.[1] Data analysis has multiple facets and approaches, encompassing diverse techniques under a variety of names, and is used in different business, science, and social science domains.[2] In today's business world, data analysis plays a role in making decisions more scientific and helping businesses operate more effectively.[3]
Data mining is a particular data analysis technique that focuses on statistical modeling and knowledge discovery for predictive rather than purely descriptive purposes, while business intelligence covers data analysis that relies heavily on aggregation, focusing mainly on business information.[4] In statistical applications, data analysis can be divided into descriptive statistics, exploratory data analysis (EDA), and confirmatory data analysis (CDA).[5] EDA focuses on discovering new features in the data while CDA focuses on confirming or falsifying existing hypotheses.[6][7] Predictive analytics focuses on the application of statistical models for predictive forecasting or classification, while text analytics applies statistical, linguistic, and structural techniques to extract and classify information from textual sources, a species of unstructured data. All of the above are varieties of data analysis.[8]
Data integration is a precursor to data analysis, and data analysis is closely linked to data visualization and data dissemination.[9]
Wiltshire (/ˈwɪlt.ʃər, -ʃɪər/;[1] abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire and Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to the west. The largest settlement is Swindon, and Trowbridge is the county town.
The county has an area of 1,346 sq mi (3,490 km2) and a population of 720,060. The county is mostly rural, with the centre and south-west sparsely populated. After Swindon (183,638), the largest settlements are the city of Salisbury (41,820) and the towns of Chippenham (37,548) and Trowbridge (37,169). For local government purposes the county comprises two unitary authority areas: Swindon and Wiltshire.
Undulating chalk downlands characterize much of the county; the North Wessex Downs in the east, Salisbury Plain in the centre and Cranbourne Chase in the south. The north-west is part of the Cotswolds, a limestone area. The county's major rivers are both called the Avon: the northern Avon enters the county in the north-west and flows in a southwesterly direction before leaving it near Bradford-on-Avon; the southern Avon rises on Salisbury Plain, flows through Salisbury and then into Hampshire.
Salisbury Plain is noted for the Stonehenge and Avebury stone circles, which together are a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and other ancient landmarks. Much of the plain is a training area for the British Army. The city of Salisbury is notable for its medieval cathedral. Large country houses open to the public include Longleat, where there is also a safari park, and the National Trust's Stourhead.