UNIT II - THE RELATIONAL

DATA MODEL & ALGEBRA

PRASHANT TOMAR
 Relational Model
• The relational model represents the database as a collection of relations. A
relation is nothing but a table of values. Every row in the table represents a
collection of related data values. These rows in the table denote a real-world
entity or relationship.

• The table name and column names are helpful to interpret the meaning of values
in each row. The data are represented as a set of relations. In the relational
model, data are stored as tables. However, the physical storage of the data is
independent of the way the data are logically organized.
 Relational Model Concepts
• Attribute
Each column in a Table. Attributes are the properties which define a relation. e.g.,
Student_Rollno, NAME etc.
• Tables
In the Relational model the, relations are saved in the table format. It is stored
along with its entities. A table has two properties rows and columns. Rows
represent records and columns represent attributes.
Tuple
It is nothing but a single row of a table, which contains a single record.
• Relation Schema

A relation schema represents the name of the relation with its attributes.

• Degree

The total number of attributes which in the relation is called the degree of the
relation.

• Cardinality

Total number of rows present in the Table.

• Column

The column represents the set of values for a specific attribute.

• Relation instance

Relation instance is a finite set of tuples in the RDBMS system. Relation instances
never have duplicate tuples.

• Relation key

Every row has one, two or multiple attributes, which is called relation key.

• Attribute domain

Every attribute has some pre-defined value and scope which is known as attribute
domain
 Relational Integrity constraints
• Relational Integrity constraints is referred to conditions which must be present
for a valid relation. These integrity constraints are derived from the rules in the
mini-world that the database represents.

• There are many types of integrity constraints. Constraints on the Relational

database management system is mostly divided into three main categories are:

1. Domain constraints

2. Key constraints

3. Referential integrity constraints

 Domain Constraints
• Domain constraints can be violated if an attribute value is not appearing in the corresponding
domain or it is not of the appropriate data type.
• Domain constraints specify that within each tuple, and the value of each attribute must be
unique. This is specified as data types which include standard data types integers, real
numbers, characters, Booleans, variable length strings, etc.
Exam: The example shown demonstrates creating a domain constraint such that CustomerName is not NULL
Create DOMAIN CustomerName
CHECK (value not NULL)

CREATE TABLE table_name (

column1 datatype constraint,
column2 datatype constraint,
column3 datatype constraint,
);
 Key constraints
• An attribute that can uniquely identify a tuple in a relation is called the key of the
table. The value of the attribute for different tuples in the relation has to be
unique.

Example: In the given table, CustomerID is a key attribute of Customer Table. It is most likely to
have a single key for one customer, CustomerID =1 is only for the CustomerName =" Google".

CustomerID CustomerName Status

1 Google Active
2 Amazon Active
3 Apple Inactive
 Referential integrity constraints

• Referential integrity constraints is base on the concept of Foreign Keys.

• A foreign key is an important attribute of a relation which should be referred to in

other relationships.

• Referential integrity constraint state happens where relation refers to a key

attribute of a different or same relation. However, that key element must exist in
the table.
• Example:
In the below example, we have 2 relations, Customer and Billing. Tuple for
CustomerID=1 is referenced twice in the relation Billing. So we know
CustomerName=Google has billing amount $300
 Operations in Relational Model
• Four basic update operations performed on relational database model are Insert,
update, delete and select.

 Insert is used to insert data into the relation

 Delete is used to delete tuples from the table.

 Modify allows you to change the values of some attributes in existing tuples.

 Select allows you to choose a specific range of data.

• Whenever one of these operations are applied, integrity constraints specified on

the relational database schema must never be violated.
 Inset Operation
• The insert operation gives values of the attribute for a new tuple which should be
inserted into a relation.

INSERT INTO table_name

(column1,column2,column3,...)
VALUES (value1, value2, value3, ...);
 Update Operation
• You can see that in the below-given relation table CustomerName= 'Apple' is
updated from Inactive to Active.

UPDATE table
SET column1 = expression1,
column2 = expression2,
column_n = expression_n
[WHERE conditions];
 Delete Operation
• To specify deletion, a condition on the attributes of the relation selects the tuple to be
deleted.

DELETE FROM table

[WHERE conditions];

The Delete operation could violate referential integrity if the tuple which is deleted is
referenced by foreign keys from other tuples in the same database.
 Select Operation
• To specify selection, all and condition on the attributes of the relation selects the
tuple.

SELECT expressions
FROM tables
[WHERE conditions];
 Best Practices for creating a Relational Model
• Data need to be represented as a collection of relations

• Each relation should be depicted clearly in the table

• Rows should contain data about instances of an entity

• Columns must contain data about attributes of the entity

• Cells of the table should hold a single value

• Each column should be given a unique name

• No two rows can be identical

• The values of an attribute should be from the same domain

 Advantages of using Relational model
• Simplicity: A relational data model is simpler than the hierarchical and network model.
• Structural Independence: The relational database is only concerned with data and not with a
structure. This can improve the performance of the model.
• Easy to use: The relational model is easy as tables consisting of rows and columns is quite
natural and simple to understand
• Query capability: It makes possible for a high-level query language like SQL to avoid complex
database navigation.
• Data independence: The structure of a database can be changed without having to change any
application.
• Scalable: Regarding a number of records, or rows, and the number of fields, a database should
be enlarged to enhance its usability.
 Disadvantages of using Relational model
• Few relational databases have limits on field lengths which can't be exceeded.

• Relational databases can sometimes become complex as the amount of data

grows, and the relations between pieces of data become more complicated.

• Complex relational database systems may lead to isolated databases where the
information cannot be shared from one system to another.
Functional Dependencies
 Functional Dependency
• Functional Dependency is when one attribute determines another attribute in a
DBMS system. Functional Dependency plays a vital role to find the difference
between good and bad database design.

• A functional dependency (FD) is a relationship between two attributes, typically

between the PK and other non-key attributes within a table.

• In other words, functional dependency is a constraint that describes the

relationship between attributes in a relation
Example
Employee number Employee Name Salary City
1 ANKIT 38000 GREATER NOIDA
2 VAIBHAV 50000 NOIDA
3 AMIT 25000 DELHI

• In this example, if we know the value of Employee number, we can obtain

Employee Name, city, salary, etc.

• By this, we can say that the city, Employee Name, and salary are functionally
depended on Employee number.

• A functional dependency is denoted by an arrow →

• The functional dependency of X on Y is represented by X →Y
Key Terms Description

Axiom
Axioms is a set of inference rules used to infer all the functional dependencies on a relational
database.
Decomposition
It is a rule that suggests if you have a table that appears to contain two entities which are
determined by the same primary key then you should consider breaking them up into two
different tables.

Dependent
It is displayed on the right side of the functional dependency diagram.

Determinant
It is displayed on the left side of the functional dependency Diagram.

Union
It suggests that if two tables are separate, and the PK is the same, you should consider putting
them. together
 Rules of Functional Dependencies
• Reflexive rule
If X is a set of attributes and Y is subset of X, then X holds a value of Y.
• Augmentation rule
When x -> y holds, and c is attribute set, then ac -> bc also holds. That is adding
attributes which do not change the basic dependencies.
• Transitivity rule
This rule is very much similar to the transitive rule in algebra if x -> y holds
and y -> z holds, then x -> z also holds. X -> y is called as functionally that
determines y.
 Types of Functional Dependencies

• Multivalued dependency

• Trivial functional dependency

• Non-trivial functional dependency

• Transitive dependency
 Multivalued dependency in DBMS
• Multivalued dependency occurs in the situation where there are multiple
independent multivalued attributes in a single table. A multivalued dependency
is a complete constraint between two sets of attributes in a relation. It requires
that certain tuples be present in a relation.

Car_model Maf_year Color

H001 2017 Metallic
H001 2017 Green
H005 2018 Metallic
H005 2018 Blue
H010 2015 Metallic
H033 2012 Gray
• In previous example, maf_year and color are independent of each other but
dependent on car_model. In previous example, these two columns are said to be
multivalue dependent on car_model.

• This dependence can be represented like this:

car_model -> maf_year

car_model-> colour
 Trivial Functional dependency
• The Trivial dependency is a set of attributes which are called a trivial if the set of
attributes are included in that attribute.
• So, X -> Y is a trivial functional dependency if Y is a subset of X.

Emp_id Emp_name
AS555 Harry
AS811 George
AS999 Kevin

• Consider this table with two columns Emp_id and Emp_name.

• {Emp_id, Emp_name} -> Emp_id is a trivial functional dependency as Emp_id is a subset
of {Emp_id,Emp_name}.
 Non trivial functional dependency
• Functional dependency which also known as a nontrivial dependency occurs
when A->B holds true where B is not a subset of A. In a relationship, if attribute B
is not a subset of attribute A, then it is considered as a non-trivial dependency.
Company CEO Age
Microsoft Satya Nadella 51
Google Sundar Pichai 46
Apple Tim Cook 57

• (Company} -> {CEO} (if we know the Company, we knows the CEO name)
• But CEO is not a subset of Company, and hence it's non-trivial functional
dependency.
 Transitive dependency
• A transitive is a type of functional dependency which happens when t is indirectly formed by two
functional dependencies.
Company CEO Age
Microsoft Satya Nadella 51
Google Sundar Pichai 46
Apple Tim Cook 57

• {Company} -> {CEO} (if we know the compay, we know its CEO's name)

• {CEO } -> {Age} If we know the CEO, we know the Age

• Therefore according to the rule of rule of transitive dependency:

• { Company} -> {Age} should hold, that makes sense because if we know the company name, we can know his age.

• Note: You need to remember that transitive dependency can only occur in a relation of three or more attributes.
 Advantages of Functional Dependency

• Functional Dependency avoids data redundancy. Therefore same data do not

repeat at multiple locations in that database

• It helps you to maintain the quality of data in the database

• It helps you to defined meanings and constraints of databases

• It helps you to identify bad designs

• It helps you to find the facts regarding the database design

Relational Algebra
• Relational algebra is a procedural query language, which takes instances of relations as
input and yields instances of relations as output. It uses operators to perform queries.
An operator can be either unary or binary. They accept relations as their input and
yield relations as their output. Relational algebra is performed recursively on a relation
and intermediate results are also considered relations.

• Relational algebra is a widely used procedural query language. It collects instances of

relations as input and gives occurrences of relations as output. It uses various operation
to perform this action.

• Relational algebra operations are performed recursively on a relation. The output of

these operations is a new relation, which might be formed from one or more input
relations.
 Basic Relational Algebra Operations
• Unary Relational Operations
• SELECT (symbol: σ)
• PROJECT (symbol: π)
• RENAME (symbol: ρ)
• Relational Algebra Operations From Set Theory
• UNION ( υ )
• INTERSECTION ( ∩ )
• DIFFERENCE ( - )
• CARTESIAN PRODUCT ( x )
• Binary Relational Operations
• JOIN
• DIVISION
 SELECT (σ)
• The SELECT operation is used for selecting a subset of the tuples according to a
given selection condition. Sigma(σ) Symbol denotes it. It is used as an expression
to choose tuples which meet the selection condition. Select operation selects
tuples that satisfy a given predicate.

σp(r)
• σ - is the predicate
•r - stands for relation which is the name of the table
•p - is prepositional logic formula which may use connectors like: AND OR and
NOT. These relational can use as relational operators like =, ≠, ≥, <, >, ≤.
• For example: LOAN Relation

BRANCH_NAME LOAN_NO AMOUNT

Downtown L-17 1000

Redwood L-23 2000
Perryride L-15 1500
Downtown L-14 1500
Perryride L-16 1300

• σ BRANCH_NAME = "perryride" (LOAN)

• OUTPUT

BRANCH_NAME LOAN_NO AMOUNT

Perryride L-15 1500

Perryride L-16 1300
σsubject = "database"(Books)
• Output − Selects tuples from books where subject is 'database'.

σsubject = "database" and price = "450"(Books)

• Output − Selects tuples from books where subject is 'database' and 'price' is 450.

σsubject = "database" and price = "450" or year > "2010"(Books)

Output − Selects tuples from books where subject is 'database' and 'price' is 450 or
those books published after 2010.
 Projection(π)
• The projection eliminates all attributes of the input relation but those mentioned
in the projection list. The projection method defines a relation that contains a
vertical subset of Relation.

• This helps to extract the values of specified attributes to eliminates duplicate

values. (pi) The symbol used to choose attributes from a relation. This operation
helps you to keep specific columns from a relation and discards the other
columns.
 CustomerID CustomerName Status
1 Google Active
2 Amazon Active
3 Apple Inactive
4 Alibaba Active

• Here, the projection of CustomerName and status will give

Π CustomerName, Status (Customers)

CustomerName Status
Google Active
Amazon Active
Apple Inactive
Alibaba Active
 Union operation (υ)
• UNION is symbolized by ∪ symbol. It includes all tuples that are in tables A or in
B. It also eliminates duplicate tuples. So, set A UNION set B would be expressed
as:
The result <- A ∪ B

For a union operation to be valid, the following conditions must hold –

• R and S must be the same number of attributes.
• Attribute domains need to be compatible.
• Duplicate tuples should be automatically removed.
 Table A Table B
Column 1 Column 2 Column 1 Column 2
1 1 1 1
1 2 1 3

A ∪ B gives:

Table A ∪ B
Column 1 Column 2
1 1
1 2
1 3
 Set Difference (-)
• (-) Symbol denotes it. The result of A - B, is a relation which includes all tuples
that are in A but not in B.
• The attribute name of A has to match with the attribute name in B.
• The two-operand relations A and B should be either compatible or Union compatible.
• It should be defined relation consisting of the tuples that are in relation A, but not in B.

• Example: A – B

Table A – B
Column 1 Column 2
1 2
 Intersection
• An intersection is defined by the symbol ∩
A∩B
• Defines a relation consisting of a set of all tuple that are in both A and B.
However, A and B must be union-compatible.
• Example:

A∩B

Table A ∩ B
Column 1 Column 2

1 2
 Cartesian product(X)
• This type of operation is helpful to merge columns from two relations. Generally,
a Cartesian product is never a meaningful operation when it performs alone.
However, it becomes meaningful when it is followed by other operations.

• Example – Cartesian product

σ column 2 = '1' (A X B)
• Output – The above example shows all rows from relation A and B whose column
2 has value 1

σ column 2 = '1' (A X B)

Column 1 Column 2
1 1
1 1
 Join Operations
• Join operation is essentially a cartesian product followed by a selection criterion.
• Join operation denoted by ⋈.
• JOIN operation also allows joining variously related tuples from different relations.

Types of JOIN:
Various forms of join operation are:

• Inner Joins:
 Theta join
 EQUI join
 Natural join
• Outer join:
 Left Outer Join
 Right Outer Join

 Full Outer Join

Inner Join:
In an inner join, only those tuples that satisfy the matching criteria are included,
while the rest are excluded. Let's study various types of Inner Joins:
 Theta Join
• The general case of JOIN operation is called a Theta join. It is denoted by
symbol θ

• Example A ⋈θ B
• Theta join can use any conditions in the selection criteria. For example:

A ⋈ A.column 2 > B.column 2 (B)

A ⋈ A.column 2 > B.column 2 (B)

Column 1 Column 2

1 2
 EQUI join
• When a theta join uses only equivalence condition, it becomes a equi join. For
example:
A ⋈ A.column 2 = B.column 2 (B)

A ⋈ A.column 2 = B.column 2 (B)

Column 1 Column 2

1 1

• EQUI join is the most difficult operations to implement efficiently in an RDBMS

and one reason why RDBMS have essential performance problems.
 NATURAL JOIN (⋈)
• Natural join can only be performed if there is a common attribute (column)
between the relations. The name and type of the attribute must be same.
Example: Consider the following two tables.

C D
Num Square Num Cube
2 4 2 8
3 9 3 9

•C⋈D C⋈D
Num Square Cube
2 4 8
3 9 18
 OUTER JOIN
• In an outer join, along with tuples that satisfy the matching criteria, we also
include some or all tuples that do not match the criteria.

Left Outer Join ( A B)

In the left outer join, operation allows keeping all tuple in the left relation.
However, if there is no matching tuple is found in right relation, then the attributes
of right relation in the join result are filled with null values.
 Left Table (Courses) Right Table (HoD)
A B C D
100 Database 100 Alex
101 Mechanics 102 Maya
102 Electronics 104 Mira

Courses HoD

A B C D

100 Database 100 Alex

101 Mechanics --- ---

102 Electronics 102 Maya

 Right Outer Join ( A B)
• In the right outer join, operation allows keeping all tuple in the right relation.
However, if there is no matching tuple is found in the left relation, then the
attributes of the left relation in the join result are filled with null values.

•A B
 Left Table (Courses) Right Table (HoD)
A B C D
100 Database 100 Alex
101 Mechanics 102 Maya
102 Electronics 104 Mira

Courses HoD

A B C D

100 Database 100 Alex

102 Electronics 102 Maya

--- --- 104 Mira

 Full Outer Join (A B)
• In a full outer join, all tuples from both relations are included in the result,
irrespective of the matching condition.

•A B

Courses HoD

A B C D

100 Database 100 Alex

101 Mechanics --- ---

102 Electronics 102 Maya

--- --- 104 Mira