expectations

The first part of visualizing data usefully is making sure the data you’re working with is not terrible.

A 3-D rendered map of Australia depicting a month of bushfires grew popular last week. Some thought it misleading. Others thought it was okay. It’s probably somewhere in the middle of that.

People misinterpret charts all of the time, because they go in with the wrong expectations before they even fully interpret what a chart is about.