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Map It
A feature in American FactFinder which allows the user to preview a geographic area on a reference map before selecting it.
Margin of error (MOE)
A margin of error is the difference between an estimate and its upper or lower confidence bounds. Confidence bounds can be created by adding the margin of error to the estimate (for an upper bound) and subtracting the margin of error from the estimate (for a lower bound). All published margins of error for the American Community Survey are based on a 90 percent confidence level.
Related terms: Confidence interval (American Community Survey), Lower bound (American Community Survey), Upper bound (American Community Survey)
Marital status
Adults are generally classified by marital status as being married, never married, separated, divorced or widowed.
Mean
This measure represents an arithmetic average of a set of numbers. It is derived by dividing the sum of a group of numerical items by the total number of items in that group. For example, mean family income is obtained by dividing the total of all income reported by people 15 years and over in families by the total number of families.
Related term: Derived measures
Mean income
Mean income is the amount obtained by dividing the total income of a particular statistical universe by the number of units in that universe. Thus, mean household income is obtained by dividing total household income by the total number of households. For the various types of income, the means are based on households having those types of income.
Related term: Income
Median
This measure represents the middle value (if n is odd) or the average of the two middle values (if n is even) in an ordered list of data values. The median divides the total frequency distribution into two equal parts: one-half of the cases fall below the median and one-half of the cases exceed the median.
Related term: Derived measures
Median age
This measure divides the age distribution in a stated area into two equal parts: one-half of the population falling below the median value and one-half above the median value.
Related term: Age
Median income
The median income divides the income distribution into two equal groups, one having incomes above the median, and other having incomes below the median.
Related term: Income
Metadata
Information about the content, quality, condition, and other characteristics of data.
Metadata related to tables presented in American FactFinder can be found by clicking on column headings or by clicking "Help" and then "Census Data Information."
Metropolitan
Refers to those areas surrounding large and densely populated cities or towns.
Metropolitan Area (MA)
A collective term, established by the federal Office of Management and Budget, to refer to metropolitan statistical areas, consolidated metropolitan statistical areas, and primary metropolitan statistical areas.
Metropolitan statistical area (MSA)
A geographic entity defined by the federal Office of Management and Budget for use by federal statistical agencies, based on the concept of a core area with a large population nucleus, plus adjacent communities having a high degree of economic and social integration with that core. Qualification of an MSA requires the presence of a city with 50,000 or more inhabitants, or the presence of an Urbanized Area (UA) and a total population of at least 100,000 (75,000 in New England). The county or counties containing the largest city and surrounding densely settled territory are central counties of the MSA. Additional outlying counties qualify to be included in the MSA by meeting certain other criteria of metropolitan character, such as a specified minimum population density or percentage of the population that is urban. MSAs in New England are defined in terms of minor civil divisions, following rules concerning commuting and population density.
Related terms: Consolidated metropolitan statistical area (CMSA), Primary metropolitan statistical area (PMSA)
Microdata files
Files with non-aggregated data about the units sampled. For surveys of individuals, microdata files contain records for each individual interviewed; for surveys of organizations, the microdata contain records for each organization.
To ensure confidentiality, the Census Bureau publishes microdata only after it is stripped of all identifying information.
Migration
Migration includes all changes of residence including moving into, out of, or within a given area. Foreign country, or state, county and city of previous residence is collected and coded. In 12 states, minor civil division (MCD) is also coded.
International Migration
Movement of people across international borders.
Related terms: Immigrants, Residence 5 years ago
Mining areas
A set of boundaries available in Reference Map that focus on geographies relevant to the census of mineral industries within the Economic census.
Related term: Reference map
Minor civil division (MCD)
A primary governmental and/or administrative subdivision of a county, such as a township, precinct, or magisterial district. MCDs exist in 28 states and the District of Columbia.
In 20 states, all or many MCD's are general-purpose governmental units: Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, and Wisconsin. Most of these MCD's are legally designated as towns or townships.
Related Terms: Census county division (CCD), County subdivision, Unorganized territory
Mode of transportation
In the Economic Census Commodity Flow Survey (CFS), this term applies to the methods of commodity shipment activities. The 2007 Commodity Flow Survey (CFS) covers business establishments with paid employees that are located in the United States and are classified using the 2007 North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) in mining, manufacturing, wholesale trade, and selected retail trade and services industries, namely, electronic shopping and mail-order houses, fuel dealers, and publishers. Establishments classified in transportation, construction, and all other retail and services industries are excluded from the survey. Farms, fisheries, foreign establishments, and most government-owned establishments are also excluded.
The CFS also covers auxiliary establishments (i.e., warehouses and managing offices) of multi-establishments companies. For the 2007 CFS, an advance survey of approximately 40,000 auxiliary establishments was conducted in 2006 to identify those auxiliary establishments with shipping activity. Those that indicated that shipping was performed (as well as non-respondents) were included in the CFS sample universe.
The possible modes of transportation are as follows:
- Parcel delivery/courier/U.S. Postal Service. Delivery services that carry letters, parcels, packages, and other small shipments that typically weigh less than 100 pounds. Includes bus parcel delivery service.
- Private truck. Trucks operated by a temporary or permanent employee of an establishment or the buyer/receiver of the shipment.
- For-hire truck. Trucks that carry freight for a fee collected from the shipper, recipient of the shipment, or an arranger of the transportation.
- Railroad. Any common carrier or private railroad.
- Shallow draft vessels. Barges, ships, or ferries operating primarily on rivers and canals; in harbors, the Great Lakes, the Saint Lawrence Seaway; the Intra-coastal Waterway, the Inside Passage to Alaska, major bays and inlets; or in the ocean close to the shoreline.
- Deep draft vessel. Barges, ships, or ferries operating primarily in the open ocean. Shipping on the Great Lakes and the Saint Lawrence Seaway is classified with shallow draft vessels.
- Pipeline. Movements of oil, petroleum, gas, slurry, etc., through pipelines that extend to other establishments or locations beyond the shipper's establishment. Aqueducts for the movement of water are not included.
- Air. Commercial or private aircraft and all air service for shipments that typically weigh more than 100 pounds. Includes air freight and air express.
- Other mode. Any mode not listed above.
- Unknown. The shipment was not carried by a parcel delivery/courier/U.S. Postal Service, and the respondent could not determine what mode of transportation was used.
There are also additional terms for mode used, which are defined as follows:
- Air (includes truck and air). Shipments that used air or a combination of truck and air.
- Single modes. Shipments using only one of the above-listed modes, except parcel or other and unknown.
- Multiple modes. Shipments for which two or more of the following modes of transportation were used:
- Private truck
- For-hire truck
- Rail
- Shallow draft vessel
- Deep draft vessel
- Pipeline
In addition, Parcel, U.S. Postal Service, or Courier shipments are considered multiple modes because this category includes all parcel shipments whether on the ground or via air tendered to a parcel or express carrier. In defining this mode, we did not combine these shipments with any other reported mode because by their nature, Parcel, U.S. Postal Service or Courier shipments are already multimodal. For example, if the respondent reported a shipment's mode of transportation as "parcel" and "air", we treated the shipment as parcel only. Also in the CFS reports, the "Truck and Rail" and "Rail and Water" combinations included under "Multiple Modes" may not reflect all the movement of trailers or containers by rail and at least one other mode of transportation. Since the shipper may not always know the modal combinations used to transport the goods, some shipments moving by more than one mode may be reported as a single mode shipment. This may result in underestimation of multimodal shipments in the CFS.
- Other multiple modes. Shipments using any other mode combinations not specifically listed in the tables.
- Other and unknown modes. Shipments for which modes were not reported, or were reported by the respondent as "Other" or "Unknown."
- Truck. Shipments using for-hire truck only, private truck only, or a combination of for-hire truck and private truck.
- Water. Shipments using shallow draft vessel only, deep draft vessel only, or Great Lakes vessel only. Combinations of these modes, such as shallow draft vessel and Great Lakes vessel are included as "Other multiple modes." (Note: By definition, "shallow draft," "Great Lakes," and "deep draft" are mutually exclusive.)
- Great Lakes. In the tables in this publication, "Great Lakes" appears as a single mode. ORNL's transportation network and mileage calculation system allowed for separate mileage calculations for Great Lakes between the origin and destination ZIP Codes.
Mortgage status
"Mortgage" refers to all forms of debt where the property is pledged as security for repayment of the debt, including deeds of trust, trust deed, contracts to purchase, land contracts, junior mortgages, and home equity loans.
Multi-unit structure
A building that contains more than one housing unit (for example, an apartment building).
Municipio
Primary legal divisions of Puerto Rico. These are treated as county equivalents.
Related term: County and equivalent entity
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