Starmer's vision quest

[First Aspect]

Are currency charts the only type of chart where it is acceptable for the X axis to not start at zero?

 

[briantrumpet]

Are currency charts the only type of chart where it is acceptable for the X axis to not start at zero?

Share prices too. Especially if you want to suggest a company is failing when its share price has 'dived' 2p in a couple of hours (ignoring that the price is £187 per share).

 

[Pross]

Share prices too. Especially if you want to suggest a company is failing when its share price has 'dived' 2p in a couple of hours (ignoring that the price is £187 per share).

I remember someone on Cake Stop posting a graph that was supposedly showing a financial catastrophe but when looking at the graph it was split into fractions of a penny (I think it may also have had a distorted y axis). Can't recall who it was but could probably guess.

 

[Psamathe]

Are currency charts the only type of chart where it is acceptable for the X axis to not start at zero?

All sorts of things ... or do you mean y-axis?

 

[PurplePenguin]

Are currency charts the only type of chart where it is acceptable for the X axis to not start at zero?

Most complaints are about the y axis. Anything plotting time will not start at the big bang.

Obviously the legendary data journalist at the FT thinks starting the y axis at anything you like is fine. I'd say you need to establish what the base is. There is no point plotting a patient's temperature in kelvin.

The base for shares is 0.

Obviously in this case, you weren't actually looking for a response.

 

[briantrumpet]

All sorts of things ... or do you mean y-axis?

I carelessly assumed that that was what he meant. Must learn to read.

Bad Graphs was a standing joke on Cake Stop. So much so that if either the X or Y axis started at zero, it would be remarked on. We had a party if both did.

 

[First Aspect]

I agree that there is generally a more compelling argument for starting the y axis at zero, and that's what I intended.

But in fairness I think the FT and Twitterati have an aptitude for distorting data using either axis.

 

[Pblakeney]

I agree that there is generally a more compelling argument for starting the y axis at zero, and that's what I intended.

But in fairness I think the FT and Twitterati have an aptitude for distorting data using either axis.

It's just high brow click/rage bait. 😉

 

[Psamathe]

I agree that there is generally a more compelling argument for starting the y axis at zero, and that's what I intended.

Trouble is what is zero? eh for years 1900? 0AD/BC or the only true zero nearly 14 bn years ago? Or artificial temperature units like ℃ or ℉ or should we only use K. And how useful would graphs be if we always plotted from eg 14bn years ago?

 

[First Aspect]

Trouble is what is zero? eh for years 1900? 0AD/BC or the only true zero nearly 14 bn years ago? Or artificial temperature units like ℃ or ℉ or should we only use K. And how useful would graphs be if we always plotted from eg 14bn years ago?

Personally I think the strict adherence to all graphs starting at zero would be unhelpful. But if we are discussing temperature, for biological (i.e. aqueous) systems, Celsius is a useful numbering system. For ALL other matters, Kelvin.

Regarding time, zero being 14 Billion years is pleasing, but perhaps not relevant to things that didn't happen for 13.8 Bn years, such as the evolution of land mammals. Truncating the axis would be tolerable in such situations.

I hope it is clear, however, that currency charts showing what happend in the last 10 minutes or so, in a range measurable in femtopence, may be misleading.

 

[PurplePenguin]

Personally I think the strict adherence to all graphs starting at zero would be unhelpful. But if we are discussing temperature, for biological (i.e. aqueous) systems, Celsius is a useful numbering system. For ALL other matters, Kelvin.

Regarding time, zero being 14 Billion years is pleasing, but perhaps not relevant to things that didn't happen for 13.8 Bn years, such as the evolution of land mammals. Truncating the axis would be tolerable in such situations.

I hope it is clear, however, that currency charts showing what happend in the last 10 minutes or so, in a range measurable in femtopence, may be misleading.

Ignore me, but pips is the correct terminology. No one needs to know that.

 

[First Aspect]

Ignore me, but pips is the correct terminology. No one needs to know that.

I prefer femtopence.

 

[BoldonLad]

Isn't that a bit of spin - weak pound is boost for exports ( no quantification on level of boost0, but only has slight effect on imports?

Have we taken advantage of this ‘perk’ and boosted exports?

 

[BoldonLad]

Short term time frames mean less than long term trends. In any one year you can see annual rises or falls, but the important issue is the long term direction over the period of a government.

Would agree with that, the 20 year graph is not good news, unless you bought Euro 20 years ago.

 

[BoldonLad]

Share prices too. Especially if you want to suggest a company is failing when its share price has 'dived' 2p in a couple of hours (ignoring that the price is £187 per share).

Yes, I like the fairly regular “shares crash” headline, when there is a 1% downturn 😂