Asked by Blake
Is there an easy way to tell what graph I should use for questions like this?
The following is a list of product manufacturing levels for the 50 states in 2004 ($ millions):
76, 5, 42, 55, 388, 34, 45, 17, 84, 131, 5, 17, 210, 184, 79, 56, 97, 124, 14, 36, 77, 220, 88, 44, 103, 6, 34, 10, 15, 94, 17, 147, 164, 7, 259, 46, 55, 190, 11, 82, 12, 126, 386, 30, 10, 88, 78, 21, 137, 5
Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census. Geographic Area Statistics: 2004. Washington, D.C. 2006.
Select what you consider to be the most appropriate form for displaying the data. Develop and appropriately label a graph. .
The following is a list of product manufacturing levels for the 50 states in 2004 ($ millions):
76, 5, 42, 55, 388, 34, 45, 17, 84, 131, 5, 17, 210, 184, 79, 56, 97, 124, 14, 36, 77, 220, 88, 44, 103, 6, 34, 10, 15, 94, 17, 147, 164, 7, 259, 46, 55, 190, 11, 82, 12, 126, 386, 30, 10, 88, 78, 21, 137, 5
Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census. Geographic Area Statistics: 2004. Washington, D.C. 2006.
Select what you consider to be the most appropriate form for displaying the data. Develop and appropriately label a graph. .
Answers
Answered by
jim
Well, you have
a) one variable per entity, and they are
b) discrete rather than continuous, and
c) within a reasonable range; the largest is no more than 80 times as big as the smallest,
so you won't go wrong with a simple linear graph - column or bar chart.
If you had two variables, like latitude vs. GDP, you might be looking at a scatter graph,
If the variables were continuous, or measurements on a continuum, like temperature against time, you'd be looking at a continuous line
If some of the numbers were much much bigger than others, like the mass of a molecule vs. an elephant vs. a planet, you would have to go to logarithmic scales to be able to see the whole range.
a) one variable per entity, and they are
b) discrete rather than continuous, and
c) within a reasonable range; the largest is no more than 80 times as big as the smallest,
so you won't go wrong with a simple linear graph - column or bar chart.
If you had two variables, like latitude vs. GDP, you might be looking at a scatter graph,
If the variables were continuous, or measurements on a continuum, like temperature against time, you'd be looking at a continuous line
If some of the numbers were much much bigger than others, like the mass of a molecule vs. an elephant vs. a planet, you would have to go to logarithmic scales to be able to see the whole range.