A data analyst is analyzing the following dataset: Which of the following methods should the analyst use to determine the total cost for each transaction?

Parsing is the process of analyzing a string of symbols according to grammar rules, typically to extract specific pieces of information, not to perform calculations to create new data.

Scaling refers to adjusting data values to a common range or distribution, often used in machine learning to normalize features, which does not directly calculate a total cost.

Compressing data involves reducing its size while maintaining its essential information, which is unrelated to calculating new values like total cost.

Deriving involves creating new variables or features from existing ones by applying calculations or transformations, such as calculating 'total cost' by multiplying 'quantity' by 'unit price' for each transaction in the dataset.