Descriptive statistics

Central tendency
Mean
Common average.

N n
∑ Xi
μ = i=1 ˉ = ∑i=1 Xi
X
N n

Median
On a sorted data set, the element that divide the data in 2 groups with the same number
of elements on each.

1,3,3,6,7,8,9 → Median = 6

1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8 → Median = (4+5)/2 ⇒ 4,5

Mode

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 Most frequent value in a data set. If all of them appear the same number of times there
is no mode.

Asymmetry
Skewness
Shows where the tail (outlier) of the data is located. It can be observed by the
relationship of the mean and the median.

Positive skew No Skew Negative skew

Mean > Median Mean = Median Mean < Median

The “population” in statistics includes all members of a defined

group that we are studying or collecting information on for data
driven decisions. A part of the population is called a sample. It is a
proportion of the population, a slice of it, a part of it and all its
characteristics.

Variability
Variance
Variance measures the dispersion of a set of data points around their mean.

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 N
∑i=1 (Xi − μ)2
n ˉ )2
∑i=1 (Xi − X
2
2
σ = S =
N n−1

Standard deviation
The square root of the variance, this way you work with smaller numbers that have the
same unit as the sample data, it makes it easier to work with.

∑N ˉ )2
∑ni=1 (Xi − X
i=1 (Xi − μ)
2
σ= S=
N n−1

Coefficient of variation (relative standard deviation)

Is the standard deviation relative to the mean. It has no unit so you can compare the
deviation of different data sets without worrying about the units.

σ S
Cv = Cv = ˉ
μ X

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 Relationship between variables
Covariance
Is the correlation between 2 variables. Ex: The size of a house related with its price.

N
∑i=1 (xi − μx ) ∗ (yi − μy )
σxy =
N

n
∑i=1 (xi − x
ˉ) ∗ (yi − yˉ)
Sxy =
n−1

Linear correlation coefficient [-1;1]

It adjusts covariance so that the relationship between the two variables becomes easy
and intuitive to interpret.

σxy Sxy
pxy = rxy =
σx ∗ σy Sx ∗ Sy

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