3.1.1 When are tables used?

Within your course, tables are likely to be used as a particular structured format to summarise numerical information. They tend to be used to present data as a summary and as a starting point for discussion. But someone always prepares tables. So always be aware of where the table that you are looking at has come from. Could the source be trying to tell you something in particular? For example, if a table were summarising the costs of running a hospital, would you expect figures from the government or the local administrators to be more accurate? Why is that?