Tuesday, April 03, 2007

Captain Capitalism's Annual Chart Contest - Entrant 1

Here it is, from Robert.


Can you beat this chart? If you can $15 smackeroos are yours along with a signed photo of the Captain!

5 comments:

Robert D. Brown III said...

Don't you think you should post the explanation for why the chart was chosen to be submitted? There is more going on with this chart than meets the eye.

Anonymous said...

IF you like that one, here's a global map of Bird Flu

http://gamapserver.who.int/mapLibrary/Files/Maps/Global_SubNat_H5N1inAnimalConfirmedSince2006_20060529.png

Anonymous said...

http://gamapserver.who.int/mapLibrary/Files/Maps/Global_SubNat_H5N1inAnimalConfirmedSince2006_20060529.png

Captain Capitalism said...

What, was it in the e-mail? Did I miss it?

Robert D. Brown III said...

Yes, I put an explanation in my last email to you for why I submitted this graph. Primarily, this graph is the type of misuse of statistical reporting that people often use to further some agenda as opposed to putting the data in a real context to clarify the issue. In this case, one doesn't really see the actual locations of the incidents. Consequently, one is led to believe that the actual distribution of the disease is more widespread than it really may be. Unintentionally, I'm sure, the graph seems to imply that the bird flu honors international boundaries, which is totally unwarranted. The graph would more clearly communcate the reach of the disease if points were used to indicate the location of each incident. It might also be more instructive to show this data in comparison to other similar disease outbreaks, like a typical human flu that kills thousands of people each year. Otherwise, all that one can meaningfully construe from this graph is that bird flu occured in Asia and Malaysia.