Histogram

It looks like a bar chart, but it reads differently. The baseline is continuous instead of discrete categories, which allows one to see distributions.

Tutorials and Guides

Summary Statistics Tell You Little About the Big Picture

Mean, median, and mode. These are the first things you learn about in…

How Histograms Work

The histogram is one of my favorite basic chart types, because it lets…

How to Read and Use Histograms in R

The chart type often goes overlooked because people don't understand them. Maybe this will help.

How to Visualize and Compare Distributions in R

Single data points from a large dataset can make it more relatable, but those individual numbers don't mean much without something to compare to. That's where distributions come in.

Examples

Relationships: The First Time…

When Americans had sex, moved in with someone, and so on. Often not average. Far from normal.

Americans are Growing Bigger

We keep getting bigger. Watch overweight and obesity rates move up over several decades.

How Much We Eat vs. How Much We Need

On average, we use less energy as we age, and so we should eat less. We don’t always adjust soon enough though.

Shifting Parent Work Hours, Mom vs. Dad

Articles about stay-at-home dads and parents with even work loads might make it seem like dads are putting in a lot of hours in the household these days. Are they? How do they compare to moms' work hours?

Years You Have Left to Live, Probably

The individual data points of life are much less predictable than the average. Here's a simulation that shows you how much time is left on the clock.

Do Movie Sequels Live Up to Their Originals?

The third installment of Pixar’s Toy Story is making a killing at the…