Module 05 Knowledge Check
5 questions. Pass mark 4 out of 5. Answer every question before checking the answer key below, then retry after reading the feedback.
1. Aggregating daily data to weekly totals…
- A. is always better
- B. absorbs the weekly cycle entirely
- C. preserves all variation
- D. reduces the trend
2. Comparing this half-year with the previous one, in a seasonal series…
- A. measures the trend
- B. measures the season
- C. is the standard approach
- D. removes seasonality
3. Widening a smoothing window increases…
- A. only the noise reduction
- B. the lag behind a turning point
- C. the number of points shown
- D. the resolution
4. Indexing series to a base period…
- A. preserves magnitude
- B. makes growth comparable and hides magnitude
- C. removes seasonality
- D. requires a log axis
5. A forecast drawn in the same style as the actuals…
- A. is standard
- B. will be read as a fact
- C. is clearer
- D. shows uncertainty implicitly
---
Answer Key and Explanations
Check these only after attempting every question.
1. B - absorbs the weekly cycle entirely
The interval is a choice about which variation the reader can see.
2. B - measures the season
Compare the same period year on year, or remove the seasonal component and say so.
3. B - the lag behind a turning point
A fifteen-point average shows a turning point seven periods late.
4. B - makes growth comparable and hides magnitude
A reader seeing only the indexed chart may conclude two very differently sized series are comparable.
5. B - will be read as a fact
Use a different style, shade the interval, and mark where the actuals stop.
Practical Check
Apply this module to your own work: complete the module activity for *Time Series Charts and Trend Explanations*, then write one sentence naming what your result shows and one naming what it does not.
Strong Answer Pattern
A strong answer names the task, the evidence used, the check performed, and the remaining limitation. It avoids "proved", "guaranteed", or "always" unless the evidence genuinely supports it.