Grafham,+L


 * __ Culminating Task __**

**__ Brain Storming __** 1. Does the student dropout rate affect teen pregnancy in Canada? -I chose not to do this topic because it did not appeal to me 2. Does the recent release of a video game affect high school student’s averages? - This topic appeals to me very much, especially with the recent release of Call of Duty: Black Ops, but finding raw data was too difficult

__**Introduction**__

There are almost 13 million people in Canada who are obese or overweight. That is roughly 37% of the population. I felt that with the internet's growing popularity with social networks and online games, people may be more likely to stay indoors on the computer.

 This is a clip from a south park episode where the characters do nothing but play the game World of Warcraft for a few weeks straight.

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**__Question:__** Does increasing internet usage affect the growing rate of obesity in adults in Canada?

**__Hypothesis:__** I believe that the increase in internet usage will mean an increase in the obesity rate in Canada. I believe this will happen because being on the internet means being inactive and therefore possibly gaining weight. Also, I believe people tend to eat while on the computer which also could contribute to weight gain.

__** Variables: **__
 * Independent: ** The increased use of the internet across Canada.
 * Dependent: ** The obesity rate in Canada.


 * __ Time Frame: __** 2005-2009. Data taken from the past 5 years to recognize any correlation between variables.

__** Region: **__ The data used is taken only from Canada, viewing all of Canada's internet use and rate of obesity.

**__Internet__**

The internet is mainly used by the younger generations, but is becoming more popular with all age groups and has greatly increased in the past 5 years with all ages.




 * __Overweight and Obesity__**

Data from the past 7 years (exceptions 2004, 2006 data N/A) of all Canadians overweight or obese.

 Over the past 5 years, the overweight and obesity rate has increased for all ages except for 35-44, which has stayed relatively the same. The group 45-64 is a lot larger because it has 19 ages within it rather than 9, but that doesn’t necessarily matter when looking at the increase in overweight people over time. **__Two Variable Analysis__** There is a positive correlation between the increase of internet use and the number of overweight and obese people for the age groups 18-34, 45-64 and over 65. There is a negative correlation between the 2 variables for the age group 35-44.




 * __Sampling Techniques and Bias__**

My data was taken from Statistics Canada. The overweight and obese data was self reported so there are going to be people who don’t participate in that census, which could skew the results. The internet data looked at was the percent of internet use in any location (library, home, etc.), but not from a business aspect. Strictly internet access for personal reasons.


 * __Hidden Variables__**

With a topic such as this, there are so many other variables that affect a persons weight, such as a persons diet or simply their genetics (metabolism). Also, other variables could affect a persons access to the internet, such as region. A person may not be an area where the internet is fast and reliable. Also financial stability may be an issue when it comes to internet use. Income and education directly relate to internet usage in Canada.


 * __Conclusion__**

So, to conclude, based on the graph and two variable analysis there is a positive correlation between the use of internet and the climbing obesity rate, although as stated before there are other variables that contribute to number of overweight people in Canada, but it is clear that sitting at a computer on the internet does not help the overweight and obesity problems in Canada.

- Internet use by individuals, by selected characteristics. (2010, September 27). In //Statistics Canada//. Retrieved November 14, 2010, from [] - Body mass index, overweight or obese, self-reported, adult, by age group and sex. (2010, November 5). In //Statistics Canada//. Retrieved November 14, 2010, from []
 * __ Bibliography __**