Some text has been changed slightly to suit the audience of. Arrows to explain graphs have been added. Note: Some words in the graphs have been deleted to make it suitable for international use. This example about kestrels and mice has been published by courtesy of de.Ĭoncept and graphs by author Martin Forster. But we have to be aware that it is only a prediction. Based on a diagram, graph or chart we can predict a development in the future. To check a hypothesis very often you need to do an experiment.
In the coming years there might be more sightings of mice than kestrels.Ī diagram helps to draft a hypothesis. If they continue like that there will be an intersection at some point. Towards the end the lines become closer again. Also this hypothesis could be correct.īased on the development of the diagram and the established hypothesis we can predict future developments of the diagram.īut be careful: Predictions are always only speculations! 
Varney sights a certain number of animals each year.
Very often there are only translucent connections. The numbers of sightings have very different reasons.” Also this hypothesis could be correct.ĭ) “The relation between sightings of kestrels and mice is only a translucent connection. Prey animals often shelter from their hunters. When there are many kestrels to see, we cannot see many mice.” This hypothesis could be correct.Ĭ) “The Mice hide from the kestrels. Therefore there can only be a lot of mice when there are fewer kestrels.” But: We know that mice do not eat kestrels.ī) “The kestrels hunt the mice. According to our diagram this is possible. Therefore there are many kestrels when there are less mice.” These hypotheses have to be questioned and assessed.Ī) “Mice eat kestrels. When there are many sightings of kestrels, there are fewer sightings of field miceįinally we can establish hypotheses how the data is related. When there are many sightings of field mice, there are fewer sightings of kestrels. Knowing the trends, we can compare them, to find out differences and relations. From 1950 to 1952 they rise significantly. Now it is important to define all significant trends. 1962: A low point of the mice line and a highpoint for the kestrel’s line. 1954: An intersection point between the kestrel’s line and mice line. 1952: A peak of the mice line and a low of the kestrel’s line. Important points are peaks, lows, turning points and intersection points. Analysis 2: Reading important numbersįirst we have to read the most important points. So this diagram visualises how many kestrels and field mice have been sighted over the years by Roy. Green line: The number of sighted field mice. Blue line: The number of sighted kestrels. y-Axis: You can read the numbers of sightings. 
x-Axis: You can read what years the animals have been sighted. Analysis 1: Reading basicsįirst you have to read the labels and the legend of the diagram. Let´s try to interpret this example carefully. 
For many years he notes the numbers in his diary. In our example Roy counted how many kestrels and how many field mice are in a field. Let´s continue with our example of mice and kestrels from the previous chapter. Getting to know the 6 Analysis Steps to interpret a graph
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