Systems Analysis and Synthesis

4.2. Deriving Functional Dependencies

The example that follows is of an unrealistically simple Academic Records database for the (imaginary) National University of Technology and Science (NUTS ). This example was chosen because most readers will have experienced a similar system. The system we describe is simple enough to illustrate basic principles, yet complicated enough to pose some problems — without overloading you with needless detail. The solution we present will be less than perfect. One can learn a lot from other people’s mistakes.

As we have seen, a conceptual schema comprises a set of tables related by foreign keys. Foreign keys implement many-to-one functions. In Figure 2.23, we sketched a schema that described an Academic Records ...