What is a Datum? Definition and Examples

A datum (plural: data) is a single piece of information or a fact. It can be a measurement, a statistic, a value, or any other type of information that is relevant to a particular context or problem.

For example, "The average temperature in July is 25 degrees Celsius" is a datum because it is a single piece of information about the temperature in July. Similarly, "The patient's blood pressure is 120/80" is a datum because it is a single measurement of the patient's blood pressure.

In statistics and data analysis, multiple data points are often collected and analyzed to identify patterns, trends, or relationships between variables. These data points can come from various sources, such as experiments, surveys, or sensors, and they can be quantitative (e.g., measurements) or qualitative (e.g., text or images).

The term "datum" is often used interchangeably with "data," but there is a subtle difference between the two words. "Data" refers to the collection of information, while "datum" refers to a single piece of information within that collection. For example, "The company collected data on customer satisfaction" versus "The dataset included several datums on customer satisfaction."