a multi - dimensional database includes data organized into hierarchical levels . for each level within a dimension , predefined thresholds are set to determine which intersections are precomputed and which are not . the general result is to precompute intersections which take relatively longer to compute at run time , and to not precompute intersections which can be calculated relatively quickly at run time . when multiple dimensions of data are provided , a step - by - step process uses the level threshold for each dimension to determine whether data is to be prestored at an intersection . an odd - even calculation insures that computations performed at run time are relatively efficient . the technique results in good run time response , while not requiring maximum storage or recalculation time for data updates . by adjusting the thresholds at the individual dimension level , response of the multi - dimensional database can be changed as desired .