Pie Charts Essay examples -- essays research papers

Pie ChartsAn classic part of determination making is having a clear understanding of the schooling used to al-Qaida decisions from. Charts can be valuable when a need to represent numeral info would benefit communicating information visu exclusivelyy. Some of the nearly important aspects of a good chart be to select the expert instance of chart (or graph) that can best characterize the data, also, to keep the design elemental in order for an audience to easily understand the information. One of the most popular types of charts is the pie chart. The pie chart is used to visually represent the proportional revalue of individual parts to the unhurt. As the name describes, this is done by representing the numerical equivalence of for each one part as a piece of the whole pie, which in aggregate equates to 100%. The Pennsylvania Department of Health (2001) says that pie charts are a good choice when a relatively small fare of parts, perhaps 3 to 7, need to be represented . With any more it becomes serious to notice the differences in magnitude thus, the pie chart loses its simplicity and impact. They can only if be used when a total amount is known, one such(prenominal) example would be an election where the total of votes received by all candidates equals 100% of the votes. Or a budget where the total amount expense is divided in to categories such as labor, facilities costs, advertising, etc which always are a part of the total. However, according to McBride (2003), the pie chart could not be used to verbalize a change in spending through out a period. A pie chart shows data at one instance, like a snapshot and cannot be used to show change in data over time (para. 4). With the advent of computers, 3D graphs have become sanely popular, unfortunately a negative aspect is that they add complexity to the number and can distort visual proportional value. It is recommended to stick with flat 2D charts (para. 6).Pie charts these days are typically generated by computer software, as a result people forget that there is actually a pocketable math involved. To create a pie chart Concordia University (2000) explains that you have to find the total value for the entire category being studied and calculate the plowshare for each segment or part. Convert the percentage values for each segment into degrees relative to the 360 degrees in the circle. (For example, 12% X 360 degrees = 43 degrees). Then, sustain a circle and d... ...chart should look like with the exception of one rule, the pieces were not arranged from largest to smallest in a clockwise manner. The sizes are mixed, making less(prenominal) clear the relative proportions of the pieces.Pie charts can be an excellent shaft of light for presenting information in a simple, visual and comprehensible manner. If used in the right situation and best practices are followed, the pie chart may be the tool that most influences a decision.ReferencesPennsylvania Department of Heal th. (2001). Pie charts and pictographs. Retrieved January 24, 2005 from, http//www.health.state.pa.us/hpa/stats/ techassist/piechart.htmConcordia University. (2000). Pie chart. Retrieved January 31, 2005 from, http//web2.concordia.ca/Quality/tools/21piechart.pdfSykes, A., & Smith, B. (1999). Getting started A simple pie chart. Retrieved January 31, 2005 from, http//www.causeway.co.uk/tutorial/rainpro/apl99/dyalog/start.htmHodges, M. (2004). Grandfather economic report series. Retrieved January 31, 2005 from, http//mwhodges.home.att.net/fed_budget.htmPerlman, H. (2003). Where is earths water located? Retrieved January 31, 2005 from, http//ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/earthwherewater.html