Chapter 3

The
Relational
Database
Model Database Systems:
Design, Implementation, and Management

CHAPTER 3
The Relational Database Model

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 Chapter Objectives
Chapter 3
The
Relational
 The logical view of data as organized in the
Database
Model
relational model
 Keys
 Relational database operators

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 A Logical View of Data
Chapter 3
The  Entities, Attributes, and Entity Sets
Relational
Database  An Entity is a person, place, event, or thing for
Model
which we intend to collect data.
 Example:

 An Attribute describes a characteristic of an entity.

 Example:

 A group of entities of the same type is known as an

Entity Set.
 Example:

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 A Logical View of Data
Chapter 3
The  Table
Relational
Database  A Table contains a group of related entities -- i.e. an
Model
entity set.
 It is also called a relation (Term borrowed from Set
theory).
 Characteristics of a Relational Table
 A table is composed of rows and columns.
 Each row (tuple) represents a single entity within the
entity set.
 Each column represents an attribute and is identified
by a distinct name.
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 A Logical View of Data
Chapter 3
The  Characteristics of a Relational Table
Relational
Database  Each row/column intersection represents a single
Model
data value (atomic).
 The number of tuples in a table is called its
cardinality.
 The number of columns is known as its degree.
 All values in a column must conform to the same
data format (type) and must be within a specified
range, known as the attribute domain.
 Changing the order of the rows and/or columns does
not change the table.

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 Example – Relational Table
Chapter 3
The
Relational
Database
Model

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 Keys
Chapter 3
The  Functional Dependence
Relational
Database  Attribute B is functionally dependent on attribute A
Model
(attribute A determines attribute B: A -> B) if all the
rows in a table that agree in value for attribute A
must also agree in value for attribute B.
 Example:

 A key consists of one or more attributes that

determines other attributes within an entity.
 Example:

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 Keys
Chapter 3
The  A key that is composed of more than one attributes
Relational
Database
Model
is known as a composite key.
 Example:

 If attribute B is functionally dependent on a

composite key A but not any subset of A then B is
fully functionally dependent on A.
 Example:

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 Keys
Chapter 3
The  Superkey: An attribute or a combination of
Relational
Database
Model
attributes that uniquely identifies each row in a
table.
 Example:

 Candidate Key: A minimal superkey, i.e., it does

not contain a subset of attributes that is itself a
superkey.
 Example:

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 Keys
Chapter 3
The  Primary Key
Relational
Database  A candidate key selected to uniquely identify an
Model
entity.
 Cannot have null values (A null value is no value, it
is NOT equal to a zero or a blank space).
 Enforces Entity Integrity (Guarantees that each
entity is uniquely identified by a non-null primary
key value)
 A primary key is a superkey as well as a candidate
key.
 Example:

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 Keys
Chapter 3
The  Foreign Key
Relational
Database  An attribute (or a combination of attributes) in one
Model
table whose values must either match the primary
key values in a designated table or be null.
 Used to logically link one table with another
(compare with the physical pointers in Hierarchical
and Network models).
 Enforces Referential Integrity (Guarantees valid
references to another table, i.e., cannot delete a tuple
from a table that is referenced by in another table
through a foreign key).

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 Example – Integrity Constraints
Chapter 3
The
Relational
Database
Model

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 Example – Integrity Constraints
Chapter 3
The
Relational
Database
Model

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 Secondary Key
Chapter 3
The  Secondary Key
Relational
Database  Used for data retrieval purpose.
Model

 May consist of a single attribute or a combination of

attributes.
 The DBMS maintains indexes on secondary keys for
faster search and retrieval of data.
 May have duplicate values.
 Example:

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 Relational Database Operators
Chapter 3
The  These operators are based on relational algebra
Relational
Database
Model
theory.
 They define functions to manipulate data in one or
more tables (relations).
 Application of a relational operator to one or more
tables results in another table.
 The eight relational operators are: UNION,
INTERSECT, DIFFERENCE, PRODUCT,
SELECT, PROJECT, JOIN, and DIVIDE.
 To be considered minimally relational, a DBMS
must support SELECT, PROJECT and JOIN
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 Relational Database Operators
Chapter 3
The  Union Compatibility
Relational
Database  Two tables are said to be union-compatible when
Model
they have the same degree (number of attributes),
say n, and the jth attributes (j in the range of 1 to n)
of the two tables are drawn from the same domain
(they need not have the same name).
 Example:

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 Union
Chapter 3
The  The tables must be union compatible
Relational
Database
Model
 A Union B results in C that contains all tuples from
both A and B with no duplicates.
 Example:
A (All Insy) B (All Fina)
Name Major Gpa Name Major Gpa
John Insy 3.4 Jack Fina 4.0
Joe Insy 3.7 Jeb Fina 2.5

C (A Union B)
Name Major Gpa
John Insy 3.4
Joe Insy 3.7
Jack Fina 4.0
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 Intersect
Chapter 3
The  The tables must be union compatible
Relational
Database
Model
 A Intersect B results in C that contains tuples that
are common to both A and B.
 Example:

A (All Insy) B (High Achievers)

Name Major Gpa Name Major Gpa
John Insy 3.4 Jack Fina 4.0
Joe Insy 3.7 Jill Insy 4.0
Jill Insy 4.0 Jeb Mktg 3.98
Bob Insy 2.7

C (A INTERSECT B)
Name Major Gpa
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 Difference
Chapter 3
The  The tables must be union compatible
Relational
Database
Model
 A MINUS B results in C that contains the tuples
that appear in A but not in B.
 Example:
A (All Insy) B (High Achievers)
Name Major Gpa Name Major Gpa
John Insy 3.4 Jack Fina 4.0
Joe Insy 3.7 Jill Insy 4.0
Jill Insy 4.0 Jeb Mktg 3.98
Bob Insy 2.7

C (A Minus B)
Name Major Gpa
John Insy 3.4
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 Product
Chapter 3 
The
PRODUCT produces a list of all possible pairs of rows from two tables.
Relational  If table A has 5 rows and B has 10, A product B will yield a table with 50 rows.
Database
 Example:
Model

A (Item) B (Supplier)
Inumber IName SName SCity
101 Sweat Shirt WalMart Dallas
205 Trousers Kmart Phoenix

C (A Product B)
Inumber IName SName SCity
101 Sweat Shirt WalMart Dallas
101 Sweat Shirt Kmart Phoenix
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205 Trousers Kmart Phoenix
 Select
Chapter 3
The
Relational
Database  SELECT yields all attributes of selected tuples that satisfy a
Model
specified condition.
 It produces a horizontal subset of a table.

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 Project
Chapter 3
The 
Relational PROJECT produces a list of all values for selected
Database
Model
attributes.
 It yields a vertical subset of a table.

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 Join
Chapter 3
The
Relational  JOIN allows us to combine information from two
Database
Model or more tables.
 The tables participating in the join operation must
have attributes defined over a common domain.
 EquiJoin: Compares specified columns of two
tables based on equality condition. The result is a
wider table where each row is formed by
concatenating two rows, one from each table, such
that the two rows have the same values in these two
columns.
 Performed by a Product followed by a Select.
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 JOIN - Example
Chapter 3
The
Relational
Database
Model

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 JOIN - Example
Chapter 3
The
Relational
Database
Model

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 JOIN - Example
Chapter 3
The
Relational
Database
Model

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 JOIN - Example
Chapter 3
The
Relational
Database
Model

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 Join
Chapter 3
The 
Relational Natural join: EquiJoin with the duplicate column removed.
Database
Model
Performed by a Project on the result of equijoin. (aka Inner
Join)
 When the term Join is mentioned without any prefix, it is
implied to be Natural Join.
 Outer Join: Unmatched rows from the participating tables
are retained in the result table with unmatched attributes left
blank or null.
 Left Outer join keeps all tuples from the left relation
 Right Outer Join keeps all tuples from the right relation
 Theta Join: EquiJoin with the equality operator replaced by
any other comparison operator, such as greater than, less
than, etc.
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 Left Outer Join - Example
Chapter 3
The
Relational
Database
Model

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 Right Outer Join - Example
Chapter 3
The
Relational
Database
Model

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 Divide
Chapter 3
The
Relational  Consider dividing a relation A with two attributes X
Database
Model and Y by a relation B with a single attribute Y.
 Note that attribute Y is common to both A and B.
 A can be thought of as a set of pairs of values <x,y>
and B as a set of single values <y>.
 The result of dividing A by B is C, a set of values of
x such that the pair <x,y> appears in A for all values
of y appearing in B.
 In general relation A can be of degree m+n, and
relation B can be of degree n.
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 Divide
Chapter 3
The  Examples of Divide
Relational
Database
Model A (Supplier-Part) B1 (Part) C1(A Divided by B1)
Sup# Part# Part# Sup#
S1 P1 P1 S1
S1 P2 S2
S1 P3
S1 P4 B2 (Part) C2 (A Divided by B2)
S1 P5 Part# Sup#
S1 P6 P2
S2 P1 P4
S2 P2
S3 P2 B3 (Part) C3 (A Divided by B3)
S4 P2 Part# Sup#
S4 P4 P1
S4 P5 P2
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 The Data Dictionary
Chapter 3
The  Data dictionary contains metadata that describes
Relational
Database
Model
the data stored in the database.
 It stores:
 the names of the data items in the database
 the types and sizes of the data items
 the constraints on each data item
 the names of authorized users, the data items that
each user can access, and the types of access
allowed.

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 Example - Data Dictionary
Chapter 3
The
Relational
Database
Model

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 The System Catalog
Chapter 3
The  System catalog is a very detailed system data
Relational
Database
Model
dictionary. It describes all objects within the
database.
 System catalog is a system-created database whose
tables store the database characteristics and
contents.
 System catalog tables can be queried just like any
other tables.
 System catalog automatically produces database
documentation.
 All data dictionary information are found in the
system catalog.
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 Data Redundancy Revisited
Chapter 3
The  The relational database model does not completely
Relational
Database
Model
eliminate data redundancy but uses controlled data
redundancy.
 Foreign keys create redundant data, but serve the
useful purpose of maintaining referential integrity.
 They are also used in Join operations.
 Sometimes user requirements demand storing
apparently redundant data, such as storing the sale
price in Invoice Line Item. A deeper analysis
reveals no redundancy (See the Invoice example).

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 Data Redundancy Revisited
Chapter 3
The
Relational
Database
Model

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 Data Redundancy Revisited
Chapter 3
The
Relational
Database
Model

 In this example Product Price is copied from the PRODUCT table to the LINE table. Does this
example actually carry redundant data?

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