Logarithmic scales for line plots
If you have a dataset where the values span several orders of magnitude, it can be easier to view them on a logarithmic scale.
A subset of the COVID-19 coronavirus data is shown in the line plot. You saw in the video that most of the cases in early 2020 occurred in mainland China. You might wonder what is happening in the rest of the world. Here, the six countries with the most number of confirmed cases outside of mainland China are shown.
The y-axes in both graphs represent the cumulative confirmed cases, while the x-axis represents the date.
On the linear scale, notice that moving up one grid line in the plot adds 20000. On the logarithmic scale, moving up one grid line in the plot multiplies by 4.
Considering the six countries on the plot, which statement is true?
This exercise is part of the course
Understanding Data Visualization
Hands-on interactive exercise
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