Graphics Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure
.
.
William Playfair's
time-series graph of prices, wages and reigning ruler over a
-year
period. Source: Playfair (
), image from Tute (
, p.
)
published graph using coordinate paper is one of periodic variation in barometric
pressure (Howard,
). Nevertheless, graphing of data would remain rare for an-
other
orsoyears,
perhaps largely because there wasn't much quantitative infor-
mation (apart from widespread astronomical, geodetic and physical measurement)
of su
cient complexity to require new methods and applications. O
cial statistics,
regarding population and mortality, and economic data were generally fragmentary
and oten not publicly available. his would soon change.
1800-1850: Beginnings of Modern Graphics
1.2.4
With the fertilization provided by the previous innovations of design and technique,
thefirsthalfofthe
thcenturywitnessed explosive growthinstatistical graphics and
thematic mapping, at a rate which would not be equalled until modern times.
In statistical graphics, all of the modern forms of data display were invented: bar-
and piecharts, histograms, line graphs and time-series plots, contour plots, scatter-
plots and so forth. In thematic cartography, mapping progressed from single maps
to comprehensive atlases, depicting data on a wide variety of topics (economic, so-
cial, moral, medical, physical, etc.), and introduced a wide range of novel forms of
symbolism. During this period graphical analysis of natural and physical phenom-
ena (lines of magnetism, weather, tides, etc.) began to appear regularly in scientific
publications as well.
In
, the first geological maps were introduced in England by William Smith
[
-
], setting the pattern for geological cartography or 'stratigraphic geology'
William Herschel(
),in a paperthatdescribesthefirst instanceof a modern scatterplot,
devoted three pages to a description of plotting points on a grid.
