A data analyst receives a flat file that includes dates.

This question pertains to theData Analysisdomain, focusing on date calculations. The task is to calculate the difference between dates in a file and the current date, requiring proper date handling.

Convert data to date format and use date functions (Option A): Flat files often store dates as strings (e.g., "2023-01-01"). Converting them to a date format (e.g., using Python’s datetime or SQL’s TO_DATE) allows the use of date functions (e.g., DATEDIFF) to calculate the difference to the current date, which is the best approach.

Validate the date format with logical functions and use date functions to analyze (Option B): Validation is unnecessary if conversion handles format issues, making this overly complex.

Use date functions to analyze the data with no conversion (Option C): Without converting to a date format, date functions may fail if the data is stored as strings.

Transform data to a numerical value and use mathematical functions (Option D): This is inefficient and error-prone compared to using date functions.

The DA0-002 Data Analysis domain includes "applying the appropriate descriptive statistical methods," and converting to date format followed by date functions is the standard method for such calculations.