Tuesday, December 20, 2005

Financial Performance Indicators

Question

The asset range on the Financial Performance Indicators CD ROM is given as A, B, C and D. I cannot find the dollar equivalent for these ranges on the StatCan Web site. Can anyone tell me what the ranges for each letter are please?

Answer

I did some digging in a related publication (Quarterly financial statistics for enterprises) and they used the A,B,C,D codes as coefficients of varation and it was displayed as a superscript note for some data items. See their explanation pasted below.

Coefficients of variation
A excellent (CV range is 0.00% to 4.99%)
B very good (CV range is 5.00% to 9.99%)
C good (CV range is 10.00% to 14.99%)
D acceptable (CV range is 15.00% to 24.99%)

The standard error as a percentage of the estimate is called the coefficient of variation (CV), or the relative standard error. Small CVs are desirable, since the smaller the CV, the smaller the sampling variability relative to the estimate.

The sample for the Quarterly Survey of Financial Statistics for Enterprises was drawn such that the CV at the Level III (67 categories) aggregation, should be no more than 10% for operating revenue or total assets. The CV indicators are shown next to these variables in the tables according to the scale presented on page 2.

Monday, December 12, 2005

Access to computers

Question

Can someone please tell me if I am missing something?

A researcher here at UNBC is looking for the numbers of people in Northern BC with access to computers.

My first reaction to this was that anyone in Northern British Columbia with access to a public library will have access to a computer and/or the Internet.

However, I suspect that she means number of people with computers at home or access to the Internet from home. I am going on an assumption here รข€“ until I get to talk to this person on Tuesday.

In my preliminary investigations, it seems to me that three surveys have addressed this: the Survey of Household Spending (latest data available is 2003), the Household Internet Use Survey (latest data available is 2003) and the General Social Survey 14: Access to and Use of Information Communication Technology (2000). Relevant data for the Survey of Household Spending is summarized on the BC Stats site at http://www.bcstats.gov.bc.ca/data/dd/handout/dche.pdf
or in CANSIM table 203-0020.

However, it seems that all these provide data down to the provincial or Census Metropolitan Area level only.

Therefore, I think that she cannot get data for the geography that she wants. Using the PUMFS, she might be able to distinguish rural vs. urban households, but that's it.

Am I missing anything?

Answer

As you noted, the three sources which could assist in answering your user's request will not meet the needs of identifying the Northern BC numbers.

Once again, it is related to the fact that the data was collected as a survey and not a census. The simple explanation is that the survey only sampled a small portion of the population and we can not apply all generalities to small areas without compromising the quality of the data.

Friday, December 9, 2005

LifePaths

Question

I have a researcher who would like to find our more about LifePaths which I gather is some kind of simulation model. I have found some general information about it on the Statistics Canada site, but this does not seem to be enough. Can someone point me in the right direction?

Answer

I found some information about LifePaths from the STC Microsimulations Page (http://www.statcan.ca/english/spsd). It seems to have quite a bit of information when you select the LP simulation in particular.

Wednesday, December 7, 2005

FED 2003 RO reference map

Question

I can't find a map of the 2003 R.O. federal electoral boundaries on the Stats Can web site. 1996 R.O. is there, at:
http://geodepot.statcan.ca/Diss/Maps/ReferenceMaps/retrieve_fede.cfm

Is the 2003 R.O. map coming soon?

Answer

As you are well aware, the link to the map you included below was from Elections Canada and not STC's Geography Division.

STC does not have an exact replica of the map, but we do have the Federal Electoral Districts (2003 Representation Order) Cartographic Boundary File
(http://www.statcan.ca/bsolc/english/bsolc?catno=92F0194X) available.

There is also a free shapefile, coverage, and e00 of the 2004 FEDs at http://geogratis.cgdi.gc.ca/download/electoral/

Monday, December 5, 2005

Visual Arts Workers

Question

We have a student here looking for occupational health statistics related to visual arts workers (painters, photographers, sculptors).

Where can we find statistical data on that subject?

Answer

Try contacting the CSST: they may be cooperative. We were able to get some good data for Ontario from their Worker's Compensation Board.

Organic Products Survey

Question

A power-point presentation on organic food from an Agri-Food Canada, AC Neilson survey is circulating around Macdonald College, and we are being asked if the data is "available".

As it was not done through Statistics Canada, am I right to assume that it is highly unlikely to be made available for academic research?

The title in the presentation says: Organic Products Study 2004/2004
copyright: Agri-Food Canada, ACNeilson, homescan, inc.

Answer

AC Neilson surveys are definitely not part of the Stats Can collection, but we do have a few things that could help your patron in terms of organic production in Canada:

1) From the 2001 Census of Agriculture, Farms classified by certified organic products produced
(http://www.statcan.ca/english/freepub/95F0301XIE/tables/html/Table12Can.htm)

2) Vista on Agriculture Study: Organic fruit and vegetable production 2000 to 2003
(http://www.statcan.ca/bsolc/english/bsolc?catno=21-004-XIE)

3) A few other ad-hoc reports on the topic by performing a keyword search for "organic" on the STC web site.

1991 Census -- Basic Summary Tabulation for Religion at CSD level

Question

A researcher at Concordia is looking for CSD-level data on religion in the 1991 Census. He is not too keen on the PUMF as it is only a small sample (3%) of the population enumerated.

It seems like this BST would be ideal: Population by Religion (29), Showing Age Groups (13b) (file name: r9101dat1.zip) but I cannot find the record layout anywhere and, as a matter of fact, the table is not even mentioned in the data documentation that I found on the FTP site. The file does exist, I even downloaded it on my computer!

So what am I missing? Is there any documentation and more importantly a record layout for this file? Or would there be be an alternative for getting the complete data for religion at the CSD level?

Answer
It can be found at
http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/datalib/cc91/cc91bsts.htm. I believe your table is the last one listed on that page. A link to the record layout is provided.

Thursday, December 1, 2005

UK Population Data

Question

A student is looking for population quarterly data for the last 10 years in UK. Where can I find it?

Answer

Experimental quarterly population estimates, follow the links from:
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=13523&More=n

Population Trends - Online from Winter 1997, it can be seen at:
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=6303 .
(For the years prior to that, our users can use the University of Waterloo's holdings [UK1OC P66], at their library from 1975 to 2003.)

Health Statistics Quarterly
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Product.asp?vlnk=6725
Also gives quarterly figures. If you look at the Vital Statistics Summary in these, you can get quarterly reports of live births. Population by year is also provided.

Monthly Digest of Statistics can help, too, by giving the monthly population.

Excel verions of T 01 Quarterly Population Estimates for England and Wales by quinary age groups and sex Sept '03 - Sept '05 (experimental)
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/ssdataset.asp?vlnk=9094&More=Y