Just wanted to offer a reminder that data is as data does. Everything can be described using numbers. (You know, like how psychology is just a special application of biology, which is just a special application of chemistry, which is just a special application of physics, which is just a special application of math.)
But most people don't speak numbers very well. If you want to get a point across to those people, you have to find a way to make the numbers into a pretty picture. Something inevitably gets lost along the way, and if you're not careful, you may end up giving the wrong idea entirely. And, of course, sometimes the people who make charts intend to lead people astray. So you gotta be S-M-R-T! And pay attention.
Here's an example of a chart that appeared in the Washington Post and probably has a lot of people thinking something that isn't true:
See, it's meant to give you an idea about how the tax plans being offered by the two guys running for president will impact people at different income levels. See how the black dude's plan gives more of its tax cuts to people making less money, and the old dude's plan gives bigger cuts to people making a lot of money. The old dude is giving some kind of cut to everybody, while the black dude is giving some cuts, and then some really big tax increases.
So who gives the most tax cuts? Advantage: old dude.
Here's another chart drawn from the exact same data source:
It looks different because the income brackets are expanded or shrunk to show how many people are in each of them. Most Americans live in the bottom three rows, so they are nice and wide. The top row from the first chart is so tiny you can barely see it, because there aren't that many people making more $2,870,000 a year.
Now who is cutting taxes more? Same data, different representation. Very different implication.
I'll bet it didn't occur to most people who saw the first chart in the Washington Post to wonder how distribution might change the picture. So I bet most people who saw it just think the old dude is giving out more tax cuts. Pretty interesting, right?
Somebody else went and made a third chart, which shows an even different way to look at the same data. Check it out!
