computer science

SuperCROSS

SuperCROSS is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand SuperCROSS rather than just read about it. In short: SuperCROSS is a desktop tabulation software tool used by statisticians for aggregating and cross-tabulating data from surveys. It does not require programming expertise, but offers a windows based environment and a drag-and-drop graphical interface.

Key takeaways

SuperCROSS belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect SuperCROSS to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of SuperCROSS from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

SuperCROSS is a desktop tabulation software tool used by statisticians for aggregating and cross-tabulating data from surveys. It does not require programming expertise, but offers a windows based environment and a drag-and-drop graphical interface. It is a product of the SuperSTAR Suite licensed by Space Time Research, a software development firm located in Melbourne Australia who have worked with the Australian Bureau of Statistics since 1986. Other statistical organisations using SuperCROSS as at August 2014 include:

The Cancer Council Victoria Visit Website Tourism Research Australia Austrade National Centre for Vocational Educational Research Statistics New Zealand Fachstelle fur Statistik Kanton St. Gallen Kuwait Authority for Civil Information King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Center Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency National Records of Scotland Swiss Federal Office for Building & Logistics Bureau of Economic Analysis Foundation Bundesanstalt Statistik Osterreich Amt fur Statistik Berlin-Brandenburg Statistics Finland Statistics South Africa Statistics Sweden US Census

Software Features Ad hoc Analysis Cross tabulation Hierarchical Classification Support Survey support – using replicate and standard weights Metadata Output formats include Excel, HTML, XML and CSV

References

http://www.statssa.gov.za/census01/html/CommProfilesTraining.pdf http://devplan.kzntl.gov.za/General/Presentations/2004Jun1/SuperCROSS_Introduction.pdf

External links SuperCross home page at SpaceTime Research

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with SuperCROSS

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what SuperCROSS claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to SuperCROSS before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about SuperCROSS ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of SuperCROSS

In research: SuperCROSS appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses SuperCROSS in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: SuperCROSS is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Data analysis software, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for SuperCROSS outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study SuperCROSS in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what SuperCROSS means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain SuperCROSS out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is SuperCROSS in simple terms?

Why does SuperCROSS matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study SuperCROSS?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on SuperCROSS.