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chart

 
Dictionary: chart   (chärt) pronunciation
n.
  1. A map showing coastlines, water depths, or other information of use to navigators.
  2. An outline map on which specific information, such as scientific data, can be plotted.
  3. A sheet presenting information in the form of graphs or tables.
  4. See graph1 (sense 2).
  5. A listing of best-selling recorded music or other items. Often used in the plural: A hit single that reached number 3 on the charts.

v., chart·ed, chart·ing, charts.

v.tr.
  1. To make a chart of.
  2. To plan (something) in detail: is charting a course to destruction.
v.intr.

To be ranked on a chart of best-selling items: a song that charted at the number one position last week.

[Obsolete French charte, from Latin charta, sheet of paper made from papyrus. See card1.]


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Thesaurus: chart
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noun

    An orderly columnar display of data: table, tabulation. See knowledge/ignorance.

verb

  1. To show graphically the direction or location of, as by using coordinates: lay out, map (out), plot. See show/hide.
  2. To form a strategy for: blueprint, cast, conceive, contrive, design, devise, formulate, frame, lay, plan, project, scheme, strategize, work out. Informal dope out. Idioms: lay plans. See planned/unplanned.

Dental Dictionary: chart
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n

A sheet of paper or pasteboard that presents a graphic representation of a condition or state.

n. a geographical map or plan, especially one used for navigation by sea or air.

v.

1. make a map of (an area).

2. plot (a course) on a chart: the pilot found his craft taking a route he had not charted.

See the Introduction, Abbreviations and Pronunciation for further details.

 
chart, term referring to maps prepared for marine navigation and for air navigation. All charts show, in some convenient scale, geographic features useful to the navigator, as well as indications of direction, e.g., true north (the direction of the geographic North Pole), magnetic north (the direction indicated by the north-seeking end of a magnetic compass needle), and magnetic declination (the difference between these two directions). Data shown on marine charts include the outline and nature of coasts, with landmarks; currents and undercurrents (both direction and force); winds; tides; location and type of lighthouses, buoys, beacons, and lightships; position of rocks, bars, reefs, shoals, wrecks, or other dangers; contour and nature of bottom (mud, sand, rock, or gravel); and depth. Depth is indicated in great detail in harbors and shallow and intricate waterways; the value indicated is usually that at mean low water. Most national governments publish charts of their coasts and harbors; the British admiralty has done the most work along these lines. In the United States the Coast and Geodetic Survey and the Hydrographic Office of the Dept. of the Navy issue charts; these are drawn using the gnomonic or Mercator map projections. Aeronautical charts show natural or man-made surface features by the use of various symbols. These charts give locations of radio-navigation stations and graphic representations of the directional information they broadcast; radio communication channels of airports and spacecraft centers; standard flight paths; and dangerous or forbidden areas (e.g., certain military installations). Elevations on the earth's surface are indicated by contour lines. The U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey issues many kinds of aeronautical charts.


Veterinary Dictionary: charting
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The keeping of a clinical record of the important facts about a patient and the progress of its illness. The patient's chart most often contains a medical history, a nursing history, results of physical examinations, laboratory reports, results of special diagnostic tests, and the observations of the nursing staff. See also problem-oriented medical record.

Word Tutor: chart
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pronunciation

IN BRIEF: A visual display of information.

pronunciation Life is like a cobweb, not an organization chart. — Ross Perot.

Wikipedia: Chart
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A chart is a visual representation of data, in which the data are represented by symbols such as bars in a bar chart or lines in a line chart.[1] A chart can represent tabular numeric data, functions or some kinds of qualitative structures.

Contents

Overview

The term "chart" as a visual representation of data has multiple meanings.

  • A data chart is a type of diagram or graph, that organizes and represents a set of numerical or qualitative data.
  • Maps that are ardorned with extra information for some specific purpose are often known as charts, such as a nautical chart or aeronautical chart.
  • Other domain specific constructs are sometimes called charts, such as the chord chart in music notation or a record chart for album popularity.

Charts are often used to ease understanding of large quantities of data and the relationships between parts of the data. Charts can usually be read more quickly than the raw data that they are produced from. They are used in a wide variety of fields, and can be created by hand (often on graph paper) or by computer using a charting application. Certain types of charts are more useful for presenting a given data set than others. For example, data that presents percentages in different groups (such as "satisfied, not satisfied, unsure") are often displayed in a pie chart, but may be more easily understood when presented in a horizontal bar chart[citation needed]. On the other hand, data that represents numbers that change over a period of time (such as "annual revenue from 1990 to 2000") might be best shown as a line chart.

Features of a chart

A chart can take a large variety of forms, however there are common features that provide the chart with its ability to extract meaning from data.

Typically a chart is graphical, containing very little text, since humans are generally able to infer meaning from pictures quicker than from text. One of the more important uses of text in a graph is in the title. A graph's title usually appears above the main graphic and provides a succinct description of what the data in the graph refers to.

Dimensions in the data are often displayed on axes. If a horizontal and a vertical axis are used, they are usually referred to as the x-axis and y-axis respectively. Each axis will have a scale, denoted by periodic graduations and usually accompanied by numerical or categorical indications. Each axis will typically also have a label displayed outside or beside it, briefly describing the dimension represented. If the scale is numerical, the label will often be suffixed with the unit of that scale in parentheses. For example, "Distance travelled (m)" is a typical x-axis label and would mean that the distance travelled in metres is related to the horizontal position of the data.

Within the graph a grid of lines may appear to aid in the visual alignment of data. The grid can be enhanced by visually emphasizing the lines at regular or significant graduations. The emphasized lines are then called major grid lines and the rest of the grid lines are minor grid lines.

The data of a chart can appear in all manner of formats, with or without individual labels. It may appear as dots or shapes, connected or unconnected, and in any combination of colors and patterns. Inferences or points of interest can be overlayed directly on the graph to further aid information extraction.

When the data appearing in a chart contains multiple variables, the chart may include a legend. A legend contains a list of the variables appearing in the chart and an example of their appearance. This information allows the data from each variable to be identified in the chart.

Types of charts

Common charts

Four of the most common charts are:

This gallery shows:

  • A histogram typically shows the quantity of points that fall within various numeric ranges (or bins).
  • A bar chart uses bars to show frequencies or values for different categories.
  • A pie chart shows percentage values as a slice of a pie.
  • A line chart is a two-dimensional scatterplot of ordered observations where the observations are connected following their order.

Other common charts are:

Less-common charts

Examples of less common charts are:

This gallery shows:

  • A bubble chart is a two-dimensional scatterplot where a third variable is represented by the size of the points.
  • A Polar area diagram developed by Florence Nightingale is an enhanced form of pie chart.
  • A radar chart or "spider chart" is a two-dimensional chart of three or more quantitative variables represented on axes starting from the same point.
  • A waterfall chart also known as a "Walk" chart, is a special type of floating-column chart.

Field-specific charts

Some types of charts have specific uses in a certain field

This gallery shows:

  • Stock market prices are often depicted with a open-high-low-close chart with a traditional bar chart of volume at the bottom.
  • Candlestick charts are another type of bar chart used to describe price movements of an equity over time.[2]
  • A Kagi chart is a time-independent stock tracking chart that attempts to minimise noise.
  • Alternatively, where less detail is required and chart size is paramount, a Sparkline may be used.

This kind of charts [3] are the main Chartists tools to forecast price movements by identifying patterns, this activity is known as Technical analysis.

Other examples:

  • Interest rates, temperatures, etc., at the close of the period are plotted with a line chart.
  • Project planners use a Gantt chart to show the timing of tasks as they occur over time.

Well-known named charts

Some of the better-known named charts are:

Some specific charts have become well known by effectively explaining a phenomenon or idea.

Other charts

There are dozens of other types of charts. Here are some of them:

Common plots

See also

References


Translations: Chart
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Dansk (Danish)
n. - søkort, kort, diagram
v. tr. - lave et kort over, udstikke en kurs på et kort, illustrere ved diagram, planlægge

Nederlands (Dutch)
kaart, tabel, grafiek, hitparade, plannen, in kaart brengen

Français (French)
n. - carte, tableau, barème, graphique, (Mus) hit-parade
v. tr. - porter (qch) sur la carte, tracer (une route), enregistrer (des bagages)

Deutsch (German)
n. - Karte, Tabelle, graphische Darstellung
v. - planen, graphisch darstellen, kartographieren, schildern

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (ναυτικός) χάρτης, διάγραμμα, ιστόγραμμα, (πληθ.) κατάλογος μουσικών επιτυχιών
v. - χαρτογραφώ, προδιαγράφω, (καθομ.) συγκαταλέγω στις μουσικές επιτυχίες

Italiano (Italian)
progettare, carta, tabella, grafico

Português (Portuguese)
n. - mapa (m), gráfico (m), itinerário (m)
v. - cartografar, registrar, catalogar

idioms:

  • bar chart    código (m) de barras

Русский (Russian)
наносить на карту, карта, график

idioms:

  • bar chart    линейный график

Español (Spanish)
n. - mapa, carta marina, esquema, cuadro, tabla, gráfica, diagrama
v. tr. - mostrar, representar, registrar

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - tabell, väggplansch, sjökort
v. - kartlägga, visa med en tabell, lägga/sätta ut kurs på sjökort

中文(简体)(Chinese (Simplified))
图表, 制成图表

中文(繁體)(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 圖表
v. tr. - 製成圖表

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 해도, 도표, 편곡
v. tr. - 해도나 도표로 만들다, 계획하다

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 海図, 図, 図表, 病歴, 週間ベストセラー表
v. - 海図に記す, 図に作る, 計画する

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) خارطه, رسم بياني (فعل) وضع على خريطه, خطط‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮מפה, תרשים‬
v. tr. - ‮שרטט, תרשם, ערך תרשים‬


Best of the Web: chart
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Some good "chart" pages on the web:


Math
mathworld.wolfram.com
 
 
 
Learn More
conic chart (mapping)
equatorial chart (mapping)
isogriv chart (navigation)

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