Definition
Data set
A data set is a collection of related data values or records considered together.
What it means
Think of a data set as the whole tray of recorded information for one investigation. One row might describe one child or one day; each column might record a variable such as temperature or travel method. The values belong together because they answer the same question.
Remember it
A data set is the whole collection; one datum is one recorded piece.
Example
For five days, Sam records the noon temperature: 21°C, 23°C, 22°C, 24°C, and 20°C. Those five labelled measurements form one data set for the question “How warm was noon this week?”
Watch for
Five unrelated numbers copied from different places are not a useful data set unless their relationship and meaning are stated.
Common mix-up
A data set is the collection itself; a table is one possible arrangement of that collection.
Exact meaning
A data set is a collection of related observations or records organised for a stated question or purpose. It may contain one variable or several variables, and its labels, units, categories, cases, and collection method give the values meaning.