S-STEM Scholar Jeannetta Ochoa's Blog

     This week I finished up the beginner's tutorial on SQL from Codecademy. The final topics I covered this week were aggregate functions and multiple tables. I started with aggregate functions, which are calculations using SQL that are used to analyze large amounts of data in order to get a summary that can identify trends or patterns. I worked with the most common aggregate functions which take multiple input values and return a single output value. Some of the common functions I used were: AVG(), MAX(), MIN(), COUNT(), ROUND(), and SUM().        These functions can also be used to group data by a specific characteristic, for instance, the data set I was working with contained prices, downloads, and categories for fake apps, I was able to group the apps by each of those characteristics by using one query each. Previous to learning this tool, in order to achieve this same result I would have had to use the WHERE clause with several queries. ...

     Last week I spent time learning to speak in SQL; SQL is a programming language after all. I was able to use SQL syntax to input commands that were able to create data (e.g., INSERT INTO table_name, ALTER TABLE table_name), access data (e.g., SELECT name FROM table_name or SELECT * FROM table_name), create tables, update data (e.g., UPDATE table_name), and delete data (e.g., DELETE FROM table_name) that was in a database.       My learning journey this week has involved discovering the importance and function of queries. Ultimately, queries speaks to the primary function of the SQL language. At the heart of SQL lies the ability to extract information from a database. This process is called querying. A query can be thought of as way to ask a database a question, and for the database to then reply with answer. This process allows one to access and make sense of the data in a database, thus unleashing its power as a valuable resource for analysis, 🠗 ...

I want to help out with an on-going project that aims to aggerate data from different databases, such as, BacDrive and the National Library of Medicine (NLM), into one searchable dashboard that will output data in a visual way. For instance, a user can use the dashboard to search for a particular organism of interest, and receive a list of information on said organism. They would be able to see what the organism eats, their lifecycle, unique features, optimal temperatures for growth, etc., all in a very readable, concise manner. Currently one has to search a myriad of databases, and read multiple research papers to find the bits of information needed for organisms that are not of primary study. Once completed the dashboard will be limited to the bacteria being researched at the current lab, but the applications of such a program have vast potential exponentially. In order to prepare for this formidable task I must first learn the basics of how to talk to a ...