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Normalization: Student - Details Course - Details Result - Details

This document discusses normalization, which is a refinement process used to resolve inconsistencies, ambiguities, and redundancies in a database designed based on an entity-relationship model. It provides an example of a "Student_Course_Result" table that contains anomalies like insert anomalies where new data cannot be added, update anomalies where existing data cannot be easily updated, delete anomalies where data cannot be deleted, and duplicate data. The document explains that normalization is needed to refine the design and make the database more efficient in terms of storage space and allowing inserts, updates, and deletes by eliminating these anomalies.

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30 views

Normalization: Student - Details Course - Details Result - Details

This document discusses normalization, which is a refinement process used to resolve inconsistencies, ambiguities, and redundancies in a database designed based on an entity-relationship model. It provides an example of a "Student_Course_Result" table that contains anomalies like insert anomalies where new data cannot be added, update anomalies where existing data cannot be easily updated, delete anomalies where data cannot be deleted, and duplicate data. The document explains that normalization is needed to refine the design and make the database more efficient in terms of storage space and allowing inserts, updates, and deletes by eliminating these anomalies.

Uploaded by

crazz1
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
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Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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2.

Normalization
2.1. Introduction
Usually in the software industry designers use E-R modeling as a requirement
analysis tool. Database design using E-R diagram is a by-product.
Database designed based on the E-R model may have some amount of
inconsistency, ambiguity and redundancy. To resolve these issues some amount of
refinement is required. This refinement process is called as Normalization.
As normalization involves building structures (like table / tables), starting
from the stage of identifying the columns (attributes) associated in the table, it is also
called Bottom-Up approach.
This normalization technique is based on a strong mathematical foundation.
Basically normalization eliminates the duplicate data and makes insert, update
and delete operations much more efficient in terms of performance and space
requirement to store the data.
In software companies, almost all the database designs are initially based on
E-R modeling and later refined using normalization techniques before they are
physically created.
2.2.. The need for Normalization
Consider a university scenario, where in the data associated with the students,
courses and their results are maintained in a table called Student_Course_Result.
Student_Course_Result Table
Student_Details Course_Details Result_Details
101 Davis 11/4/1986 M4 Applied Mathematics Basic Mathematics 7 11/11/2004 82 A
102 Daniel 11/6/1987 M4 Applied Mathematics Basic Mathematics 7 11/11/2004 62 C
101 Davis 11/4/1986 H6 American History 4 11/22/2004 79 B
103 Sandra 10/2/1986 C3 Bio Chemistry Basic Chemistry 11 11/16/2004 65 B
104 Evelyn 2/22/1986 B3 Botany 8 11/26/2004 77 B
102 Daniel 11/6/1987 P3 Nuclear Physics Basic Physics 13 11/12/2004 68 B
105 Susan 8/31/1985 P3 Nuclear Physics Basic Physics 13 11/12/2004 89 A
103 Sandra 10/2/1986 B4 Zoology 5 11/27/2004 54 D
105 Susan 8/31/1985 H6 American History 4 11/22/2004 87 A
104 Evelyn 2/22/1986 M4 Applied Mathematics Basic Mathematics 7 11/11/2004 65 B

Figure 2.1 : Data file in table format


If we observe the table shown in Figure 2.1 closely, we would find that the
table has many anomalies. They are
Insert Anomaly
In some cases, Insertion of new data is difficult.
Example: We cannot insert prospective course which does not have any
registered student or we can not insert student details who is yet to register for any
course.
Update Anomaly
In some cases, Updation of existing data is difficult.
Example: If we want to update he course M4s name we need to do this
operation three times. Similarly we may have to update student 103s name twice if it
changes.
Delete Anomaly
In some cases, deletion of existing data is not possible.
Example: If we want to delete a course M4, in addition to M4 course details,
other critical details of student also will be deleted. This kind of deletion is harmful to
business. Moreover, M4 appears thrice in above table and needs to be deleted thrice.
Duplicate Data
The table has lots of duplicate data.

Example: Course M4s data is stored thrice and student 102s data stored
twice. This redundancy will increase as the number of course offering and student
increases.
Hence we need to refine our design so that we make an efficient database in
terms of storage space and Inserts, Updates and Deletes operations. This refining
technique is called as normalization.

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