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Rubly t1_j33uj2u wrote

I just did the same Google searches and got the opposite results:

  • Data is: 1,240,000,000
  • Data are: 881,000,000
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prettyhugediscer OP t1_j344ck1 wrote

Weird. My results were: Data is 4.3 million, Data are 5.58 million. I should’ve asked ChatGPT

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Tommyblockhead20 t1_j34xzsd wrote

Google adjust results based on factors like location and what else you’ve searched recently. You’d probably get the same results as each other if you used an incognito tab. For what it’s worth, google trends shows, “Data is” is searched about 3x more often than “Data are”.

Oh and chatGPT is a chat bot, not a fact bot. It’s not for if you are trying to get factual information, it’s just for writing text that sounds human.

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Charming_Scratch_538 t1_j33ud2o wrote

This is dependent upon which form of English you speak. Neither is more correct than the other just as no one language’s grammar rules are any “more correct” than any other language’s rules.

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Rubly t1_j33vpa3 wrote

Also, if OP is interested in "correct" grammar, they should note that a hyphen shouldn't be used in the phrase "grammatically correct."

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prettyhugediscer OP t1_j343zaf wrote

Is that modifier not considered a compound adjective? I’ll admit I’m always confused by this when Word changes its mind every 5 min

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Rubly t1_j344kn8 wrote

You don't need a hyphen when the modifier ends in -ly. From the Chicago Manual of Style:

Compounds formed by an adverb ending in ly plus an adjective or participle (such as largely irrelevant or smartly dressed) are not hyphenated either before or after a noun, since ambiguity is virtually impossible. (The ly ending with adverbs signals to the reader that the next word will be another modifier, not a noun.)

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prettyhugediscer OP t1_j344j2q wrote

Interesting, thanks for the info! I come from a scientific writing background

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masterofyourhouse t1_j33uain wrote

Could it possibly be a regional thing, like how team is plural in British English and singular in American English?

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Valyrian_Tinfoil t1_j3518ir wrote

You’re saying there’s no such word as “teams” in Britain’s lexicon of words? Or even vernacular usage?

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masterofyourhouse t1_j354yxa wrote

No, what I meant is that in American English you say “our team is winning”, but in British English you say “our team are winning”. The team is a unit made up of multiple people, and British English reflects the “multiple people” part whereas American English reflects the “unit” part.

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Valyrian_Tinfoil t1_j3590mu wrote

Ah. Well that’s just stupid. Like when I’m talking about family, which is composed of individual members I love, I don’t say “my family are having dinner tonight”. Why do you think team is treated in such a peculiar and incorrect way?

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masterofyourhouse t1_j359fjc wrote

Oh, “my family are” would also be correct in British English! Basically any noun that describes a collective is treated this way. It’s an interesting quirk and definitely sounds odd if you’re not used to it.

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AmazingThinkCricket t1_j38p3ig wrote

Least ignorant and arrogant American

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Valyrian_Tinfoil t1_j3a4dev wrote

Idgaf. And I do actually take pride in saying what I feel in a time where doing so is so repressed.

I truly feel that it is stupid to use ‘are’ for nouns that are a collective.

So go ahead and insult America, makes you no different than the rest of the world we’re protecting.

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JPAnalyst t1_j33voz8 wrote

I won’t say data are. I know it’s grammatically correct but I’m not doing it. I’m also not going to say datum.

I’m also not changing plural RBIs to RBI in baseball.

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corink420 t1_j344j8u wrote

You’ve never known nonsensical fury if you haven’t been “corrected” for saying RBIs instead of RBI

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JPAnalyst t1_j3476z7 wrote

There are people today who have only known the game since they started saying RBI. I’m old and I’m not changing. 75% of my life we used an S. LOL.

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datagorb t1_j34izt8 wrote

I’m a data professional and I absolutely agree with you, hahaha.

I’m also constantly torn between whether I collect “Walkmans” or “Walkmen” or “Walksman.”

And I change my pronunciation of “data” all willy nilly.

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Valyrian_Tinfoil t1_j351ztd wrote

My statistics professor went on a tangent one day about how the ‘a’ sound in “data” (as in dapper) signifies singular information and “data” as in the character from Star Trek signifies the distribution of information.

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420spaceship t1_j34ga1w wrote

Well, even if it is being used as a plural noun, data is a collective noun, so it would always be singular. So actually most people are wrong, including OP.

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datagorb t1_j34j9we wrote

You’re right and you should say it again

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small-p-value t1_j34ya47 wrote

It's actually both, depending on the context in which "data" is uses. If "data" is meant to refer to a specific collection of numbers, then it is plural: "The data are in a spreadsheet." Replace the word "data" with "numbers" in your head. If "data" is meant to refer to a nonspecific collection of information, then it is singular: "The data on drinking and driving is clear". Replace the word "data" with "information" in your head. (Source: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/data)

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AltLeft4Ever t1_j33yvdg wrote

Could also be that people are talking about someone named Data.

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DameKumquat t1_j34f7h0 wrote

Or a company, or a concept like 'Big Data is watching you'.

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GermanBeerYum t1_j35bgje wrote

Or in phrases: "viewers of this data are more likely to...", "the main argument against the collection of this data is...", etc.

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cupricdagger t1_j3536bu wrote

Why do you say that "data is" is incorrect?

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andrew_rides_forum t1_j35w27w wrote

Data is a plural noun, the singular form is datum.

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irkli t1_j35otjg wrote

Datum is singular, but archaic I think. I use it just to be an asshole.

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andrew_rides_forum t1_j35w6ma wrote

Depends on the context. “Datum” is used frequently in many engineering fields.

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irkli t1_j35wizk wrote

Damn then. I'll have to find a better anachronism. Sigh!

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IAmAlive_YouAreDead t1_j3710hs wrote

If everyone decides to start using a word a certain way, that then becomes the way the word is used. I have many datas to support this.

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bunnnythor t1_j3b2s1v wrote

I’m looking forward to the day when this subreddit becomes r/datumsarebeautiful

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1Marmalade t1_j34d4nd wrote

Don’t worry about what’s most common (check a lot vs alot! Nobody says adozen or abunch). Data are plural.

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prettyhugediscer OP t1_j33sqh1 wrote

Data obtained from quick Google searches. Visualization produced using ggplot2 in R.

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JewishSpaceTrooper t1_j33z45o wrote

Datum is: Data are: I bet “data are” gives more results in the end

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