Discrete and Continuos Data - The Differences

• Before getting into this, you need to know How to calculate simple statistics.

Several differences between discrete and continuous data would be that "continuous" data is:

• measured and represented by an infinite number of values and can possess any value, and
• has no natural category, meaning we cannot precisely measure its category.

For example, categories such as:

• the number of weight
• the number of width, or
• the number in length

cannot be measured because their values could be or are infinite.

Whereas discrete data can only possess:

• a specific value and can only represent a few values. (It is what it is and it's measures are limited).

Discrete data however, unlike continuous, does possess:

• natural categories.

In Statistics for example, when determining the age of 100 people, discrete data sets are used in categories to classify the different ages of the 100 people. My example below is considered a "natural category."

For Example,

1. category 1 could represent 1 year -10 years old
2. category 2 is 11 - 20 years old...and so on...up to any category, e.g. 20 is 190 years old - 200 years old.

Each category represents a population or group of people. Although category 20 is highly unlikely, it will keep rising higher and higher until determined by the statistician that higher categories will not be required or will eventually stop when all of the 100 people are placed in their specific categories, thus placing a discrete limit on the number of categories.

Another example of discrete data would be to categorize how far two people can run without stopping. Eventually both will stop, either for rest, or, to quit. Unless of course someone can run a "continuous" infinite distance without stopping, in that case that would be a miracle, and I don't believe that miracles can be measured statistically or scientifically.

And that brings a question to mind. Can miracles be considered continuous data or any type of data? They can't be measured infinitely or given a limit, or can they? Hmmm...