Describing Graphics

Graphics Graphics are indispensable in technical writing. They not only supplement the text but present the information that words can not adequately or effectively convey. 2

Graphics There are various types of graphics, including tables, graphs, charts, diagrams, drawings, and photographs. Each type of graphics has its own strengths and weaknesses. Therefore, to use graphics effectively, we must know when to use graphics, what kind of graphics to use, how to make them, and how to interpret and integrate them with the text. 3

Tables Tables are usually used to give order to a lot of data, or to present data for comparison and contrast. 4

Describing a table In 1987 the government spent $500 million on education. This figure increased by $100 million in the following year to cover an expansion of adult education. In 1989 expenditure maintained the same level, but during the next two years it rose considerably as a large number of new colleges were built. First, in 1990 there was an increase of 50%; then, in the. 5

following year expenditure doubled. After this expansion the figure fell by $400 million in Education 6

Practice: In 1987 the company’s revenue was $1 billion. This figure __________________ in the following year when its new product seemed unprofitable. In 1989 the revenue _____________________ but, fortunately, in the next year there _____________________ as the next-generation cells became very popular. In 1991 the figure _____________________ although in the final year of this period there ______________________ Revenue1 bn500 mn 1.2 bn1.5 bn1.3 bn 7

Graphs Graphs are an excellent tool to show a trend, a direction, or a pattern of change in the data. The horizontal axis is usually used to plot the independent variable, while the vertical axis is for the dependent variable. 8

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Graphs The horizontal axis in the graph is the 24 hours in a day divided into 8 periods of time; the vertical axis is the number of passing vehicles in hundreds. It is clear from the graph that garbage men should clean the roads between 12 midnight to 3 o’clock in the morning since it is the period of time there is the least traffic on the roads. 10

Describing a graph –Trend: upward/downward trend, fluctuate, climb up to the peak, drop to the valley –Verbs: increase/rise/climb/soar/rocket decrease/fall/drop/decline/slide/crash hold /remain /maintain steady level off, stabilize 11

Describing a graph –Nouns: (same as verbs)rise, increase, drop, fluctuation, recovery, stabilization –Adjectives and Adverbs: steady/steadily, slow/slowly, gradual/gradually, slight/slightly, substantial/substantially, considerable/considerably, rapid/rapidly, swift/swiftly, sharp/sharply, 12

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As shown in the graph, Company B enjoyed the most rapid productivity growth in the last five years ( ). Compared to Company B, Company A had even more rapid growth from 1987 to 1988, but productivity rate dropped from 1988 to Then it climbed up again. 14

The two almost parallel lines for showed that the two companies had very similar productivity growth in this period of time. Company C had a stable but only modest productivity growth in the years studied. As a result, its productivity was the lowest among the three companies in

Based on the collected data, we would urge Company C to take some measures to speed up its productivity growth. 16