# Attribute Semantics

It is important to understand the meaning of the attributes:

## Spatial and Temporal Semantics

This refers to attributes that describe something about **space** or **time**, respectively.\
For example, an attribute 'region' is categorical and spatial, 'latitude' and 'longitude' are quantitative and spatial, 'order date' is quantitative and temporal.

## Sequential, Diverging and Cyclic

These are used to describe the order of attribute values.

A **sequential** attribute has values in a certain sequence. Ex. age, height, weight.

A **diverging** attribute is one for which we can determine a middle value (or zero-value) such that all the values above it are greater than it (or positive) and all the values below it are less than it (or negative). Ex. temperature, altitude.

A **cyclic** attribute has values that repeat in a period of time. Ex. hour, week, year.

## Hierarchical Attributes

This refers to attributes that may have an internal hierarchical structure.

Ex. product sub-categories, dates, spatial regions, taxonomies.


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