# "Frequency" definition and usage: pedantic? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 28, 2014, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frequency-definition-and-usage-pedantic/689419 "2014-05-28T00:06:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2014, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frequency-definition-and-usage-pedantic/689419/1 "2014-05-28T00:06:54Z")
First before scrolling down, in your head define the word “frequency” in a statistical context. . . . . . . . . . . . . . My eldest was apparently bothered that he was marked wrong in a population gentics class for answering a question requesting the frequency of an alleles with the absolute number of times it occurred. “Frequency” apparently [means](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frequency_(statistics)) the absolute number of times an event occurred. But usage that I am familiar with anyway always is referencing what is more precisely phrased as “relative frequency.” The teacher was using the term in that way and population genetics apparently uses the term that way. This bothers him because in his mind a mathematical term defined cannot shift definitions. This is a pretty pedantic population so I come to you: is he being excessively pedantic and should he accept that in most of what he will experience in biology and medicine (he is taking post bac classes with an aim for med school) that “frequency” is usually short-hand for “relative frequency” and that if someone meant to discuss “frequency” as officially defined in statistics they would specify “absolute frequency” as a practical measure? Or do you agree with his discomfort? ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2014, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frequency-definition-and-usage-pedantic/689419/2 "2014-05-28T00:21:34Z")
He’s being very pedantic. Sure, I’ve seen histograms showing absolute counts, with “frequency” on the y-axis. But most times, frequency is represented as a proportion. No one I knows says “relative frequency”. In my line of work, I’ll say “frequency” when referring to # of events in time. I also use it when I’m talking about a proportion in space. I use the term interchangeably with “rate”. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2014, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frequency-definition-and-usage-pedantic/689419/3 "2014-05-28T02:56:24Z")
I’d have said it has to be measured in the context of the population. What is the frequency of Jewish families in my neighborhood? Let’s say, fifty two. Without knowing how big my neighborhood is, that datum is close to meaningless. Maybe my entire neighborhood consists of those 52 families! Or maybe it is a large neighborhood of 52,000 families. The number is nearly always qualified: “Fifty two per 10,000 households.” That’s the only way it’s of any value to anyone. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2014, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frequency-definition-and-usage-pedantic/689419/4 "2014-05-28T03:10:38Z")
The definition I’m most familiar with is that **frequency** = number of occurrences while **relative frequency** = proportion/percentage of occurrences. But… > [@DSeid](#): > > This bothers him because in his mind a mathematical term defined cannot shift definitions. a mathematical term can have different definitions in different contexts. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2014, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frequency-definition-and-usage-pedantic/689419/5 "2014-05-28T03:17:00Z")
Well [allele frequency](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allele_frequency) has a distinct meaning. > [@](#): > > Allele frequency, or gene frequency, is the proportion of a particular allele (variant of a gene) among all allele copies being considered. > > Formal definition: Allele or gene frequency is the percentage of all alleles at a given locus in a population gene pool represented by a particular allele.[1][2] Perhaps this wasn’t made explicit in an earlier lesson?