let's begin our discussion of this matter with a datum from actual experience

Recent Examples on the Web

Coronavirus testing has reached record levels in Oregon with nearly 12,000 residents receiving results in the past week, according to state data analyzed by The Oregonian/OregonLive. oregonlive, "Coronavirus testing rises sharply in Oregon as capacity expands, guidance loosened," 30 Apr. 2020

But Smith and her colleagues now have solid data to back up other aspects of these creatures’ superpowered spines at a level of detail that’s never been seen before. Katherine J. Wu, Smithsonian Magazine, "Hero Shrews’ Extreme, Superstrong Backbones Are the Stuff of Legend," 30 Apr. 2020

Blacks have suffered roughly double the fatality rate of whites during the epidemic, according to city health data. Claudia Torrens, The Christian Science Monitor, "Immigrants deliver food and hope to others struggling in crisis," 30 Apr. 2020

The study of the highly disparate places will provide data about community spread of COVID-19, a UCSF news release said. Maura Dolan, Los Angeles Times, "Marin and UCSF differ on whether isolated Bolinas can be declared free of coronavirus," 29 Apr. 2020

In particular, fog-clearing may enable the widespread use of an emerging technology known as free-space optical communications, which delivers data in laser light through air instead of optical fiber. Sophia Chen, Wired, "Physicists Clear the Air With a Sweet Frickin' Laser Beam," 29 Apr. 2020

In total, 78 Ohioans have died since Sunday, according to Wednesday’s data. Jessie Balmert, Cincinnati.com, "Coronavirus in Ohio: Virtual graduations are best option for the class of 2020, DeWine says," 29 Apr. 2020

In Birmingham, the state’s largest city, Mayor Randall L. Woodfin (D) has long nursed fears that the Republican governor would base her coronavirus decisions on the words of conservative pundits and politicians, not on scientific data. Washington Post, "Southern governors who initially downplayed coronavirus threat ease into re...," 29 Apr. 2020

Preprints allow scientists to share data quickly, and speed is vital in a pandemic: Several important studies were uploaded and discussed a full month before being published. Ed Yong, The Atlantic, "The Pandemic Doesn’t Have to Be This Confusing," 29 Apr. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'datum.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.