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 Week 4 – CST– 363 Introduction to Database Systems

This week is halfway through the course. Briefly summarize 5 things you have learned in the course so far. List at least 3 questions you still have about databases.

The five things I have learned in the course so far are the structure of relational databases, SQL syntax, database design, normal forms, and how databases store data.

The relational database structure is organized using tables, which have names, fixed tuples of columns, and a varying set of rows. A column has a name and a data type. A row is a tuple of values and does not have a name. Each value belongs to a column and the column’s data type. The data type is used to assign a value to a column, such as int, char, and varchar.

SQL is a high-level computer language for storing, manipulating, and retrieving data. It uses statements which are complete commands composed of one or more clauses. The most common clauses included Select, From, and Where. There are also commands like INSERT, UPDATE, and DELETE that are used to modify data.

Database design begins with written or verbal requirements for the database. The requirements are then formalized as an entity-relationship model and implemented in SQL. The entity-relationship model is made up of entities, relationships, and attributes. You use an ER diagram or entity-relationship diagram to depict the entities, relationships, and attributes. Analysis, logical design, and physical design are the three phases of database development.

When designing a database, you want to minimize redundancy which occurs when there is repetition of related values in a table. Normal forms are rules for designing tables with less redundancy. The six normal forms include first normal form, second normal form, third normal form, Boyce-Codd normal form, fourth normal form, and fifth normal form. They are numbered from greatest to least redundancy. Typically, only the first three normal forms and Boyce-Codd normal form are used.

Lastly, I have learned that databases store data in blocks ranging from 2 kilobytes to 64 kilobytes. Databases that are optimized for transactional applications, which read and write individual rows, store an entire row within one block which is called row-oriented storage. Other databases might be optimized for analytic applications, which read a few columns from many rows. These databases are better suited for column-oriented storage which has each block store values for a single column only.

3 Questions that I still have about databases.

1.      What is data warehousing?

2.      What does the term ACID mean?

3.      I want to learn more about joins to get better at when and how to use them.


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