Axes on graphs: What are axes? | TheSchoolRun

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x and y-axis are two important lines that make a graph. A graph consists of a horizontal axis and a vertical axis where data can be represented. A point can be described in a horizontal way or a vertical way, which can be easily understood using a graph. These horizontal and vertical lines or axis in a graph are the x-axis and y-axis respectively. In this mini-lesson, we will learn about the x-axis and y-axis and what is x and y-axis in geometry along with solving a few examples.

1.	X and Y-Axis Definition
2.	X and Y-Axis Equation
3.	What Comes First: X-Axis or Y-Axis?
4.	FAQs on X and Y Axis

X and Y-Axis Definition

Any point on the coordinate plane is well defined by an ordered pair where the ordered pair is written as (x-coordinate,y-coordinate) or (x,y), where x-coordinate represents a point on the x-axis or perpendicular distance from the y-axis and y-coordinate represents a point on the y-axis or perpendicular distance from the x-axis. X and y-axis are the axes used in coordinate systems that form a coordinate plane. The horizontal axis is represented by the x-axis and the vertical axis is represented by the y-axis. The point where the x and y-axis intersect is known as the origin and is used as the reference point for the plane. The x-axis is also known as abscissa or x graph whereas the y-axis is also known as ordinate or y graph. The image below shows the respective representation.

For example: The population of a city from 2015 to 2020 is given in the X and Y graph table as:

Years	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020
People in Millions	1	1.5	2	2.5	3	3.5

To locate any point on the coordinate plane, we use an ordered pair where the ordered pair is written as (x-coordinate,y-coordinate) or (x, y), where x-coordinate represents a point on the x-axis or perpendicular distance from the y-axis and y-coordinate represents a point on the y-axis or perpendicular distance from the x-axis, therefore it is clear from above that x-axis comes first when writing the ordered pair to locate a point. We can see here that the location of each point on the graph is noted as an ordered pair where the x-axis or x-coordinate leads the y-axis or y-coordinate. Then to represent these points on the x and y chart, using years on the x-axis and the corresponding population on the y-axis as:

X and Y-Axis Equation

Let’s consider a linear equation y = 2x+1. Now to graph this equation construct a table having two columns for values of x and y. To draw the x and y-axis coordinate graph of the linear equation, we need to draw the X and Y-axis grid table for at least two points.

x	y
0	1
1	3
2	5

Now draw the points on the graph where the values of x lie on x-axis and the corresponding values of y lie on y-axis. Then join the points with a straight line to draw the graph of the equation.

What Comes First: X-Axis or Y-Axis?

To locate any point on the coordinate plane, we use an ordered pair where the ordered pair is written as (x-coordinate,y-coordinate) or (x,y), where x-coordinate represents a point on the x-axis or perpendicular distance from the y-axis and y-coordinate represents a point on the y-axis or perpendicular distance from the x-axis, therefore it is clear from above that x-axis comes first when writing the ordered pair to locate a point. We can see here that the location of each point on the graph is noted as an ordered pair where the x-axis or x-coordinate leads the y-axis or y-coordinate.

Important Notes:

• x-axis is also called abscissa.
• y axis is also called ordinate.
• There are infinite points on the x-axis and y-axis.
• Origin is the intersection point of x-axis and y-axis.

Related Topics

Listed below are a few interesting topics related to x and y axis.

• Introduction to Graphing
• Geometry
• Polar Coordinates

 

X and Y Axis Examples

1. Example 1: Daniel is given an x and y-axis math problem by his teacher, where he has to plot the points (3,2) and (2,3) on a graph and draw a line passing through these points. Can you determine the point where it meets x-axis?

   Solution: The points can be plotted on the graph as shown.

   Therefore, the line meets the x-axis at the point (5,0).

2. Example 2: Plot the points (0,2), (0,4.5), and (0,-3) on a coordinate system. Do all the points lie on a line? Can you name the line?

   Solution: The points on the graph are shown below.

   Clearly, the points lie on a line on the y axis.

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Practice Questions on X and Y Axis

 

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FAQs on X and Y Axis

What are the 4 Quadrants in a Graph?

The four quadrants or x and y-axis quadrants are as follows:

• Quadrant 1: Is the positive side of both x and y axis.
• Quadrant 2: Is the negative side of x axis and positive side of y axis.
• Quadrant 3: Is the negative side of both x and y axis.
• Quadrant 4: Is the negative side of y axis and positive side of x axis.

How Do I Graph an Equation?

To graph an equation, first construct a table having two columns for values of x and y. Then draw the points on the graph where the values of x lie on the x-axis and the corresponding values of y lie on the y-axis. Then join the points to draw the graph of the equation.

Which Point is on the Negative y-axis?

The point which has a negative value of its y-coordinate is on the negative y-axis.

Which is x and y-axis?

The horizontal axis is known as the x-axis and the vertical axis is known as the y-axis.

How Do you Plot a Graph with the x and y-axis?

At first, we draw and label the x and y-axis. Then we plot the coordinates of the function at various values of the x and y-coordinates. Then we connect the coordinates and plot the graph of a function.

What is the Name of the y-axis?

The vertical axis is known as the abscissa-axis.

What is the Name of the x-axis?

The x-axis is known as the ordinate-axis.

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What is X And Y-Axis? Definition, Facts, Graph Example & Quiz

An axis in mathematics is defined as a line that is used to make or mark measurements. The x and y-axis are two important lines of the coordinate plane. The x-axis is a horizontal number line and the y-axis is a vertical number line. These two axes intersect perpendicularly to form the coordinate plane. The x-axis is also called the abscissa and the y-axis is called the ordinate.

Any point on the coordinate plane can be located or represented using these two axes in the form of an ordered pair of the form (x,y). Here, x represents the location of the point with respect to the x-axis and y represents the location of the point with respect to the y-axis.
The origin is where the two axes intersect and is written as (0,0). 

Plotting Points on X and Y Axis

Let us learn how to plot a point on the graph by using the X- and Y-axis.

For example: Let’s try to plot the point B(3,4) on the graph.

Here, the x-coordinate of B is 3. So we will start from the origin and move 3 units to the right on x-axis.

Now, the y-coordinate of B(3,4) is 4, so we will go 4 spaces up from this point.

And thus we have plotted our point B(3,4) on the graph using the axes.

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Representing a Linear Equation on X- and Y-Axis

To understand how to represent a linear equation on the graph using the X- and Y-axis, 

let us consider a linear equation, y = x + 1. 

Now, let’s build a table to represent the corresponding values of y for different values of x and create their ordered pairs:

x	y	Ordered pair
0	1	(0,1)
1	2	(1,2)
2	3	(2,3)
3	4	(3,4)

The next step is to plot these ordered pairs on the coordinate plane graph.

As a final step, we will join these points to form a straight line and that will be the representation of the equation y = x + 1.

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Solved Questions

Question 1: Which of the following points lie on the x-axis?

(0, 1) (4, 0) (7, 7) (−5, 0)       (−4, 4) (0, −5) (8, 0) (6, 0)

Answer: Since the coordinates lying on x-axis have their y coordinate zero (0), the following points will lie on x-axis:

(4, 0) (−5, 0) (8, 0) (6, 0)

Question 2: Two different points are to be plotted on a graph. If the given points are (3,2) and (2,3), then plot these two points on the X- and Y-axis. Also, find out the point where the straight line going through these points meets the x-axis.

Answer: For (3,2), as we can see, the x-coordinate point is 3, and the y-coordinate point is 2.

Similarly we can plot the point (2,3).

Now, we can join both points with a straight line when we have plotted both points. After extending the straight line, we see that this line intersects the x-axis at point (5,0).

Question 3: For a linear equation y = 2x + 6, find the point where the straight line meets y-axis on the graph.

Answer: On y-axis, the x-coordinate of the point is 0. Therefore, we can find the intersection point of y-axis and y = 2x + 6 by simply putting the value of x as 0 and finding the value of y. y = 2(0)+6 = 0 + 6 = 6.

So the straight line of the equation y = 2x + 6 meets the y-axis at (0,6).

Practice Problems

1

What is the x-axis called?

Ordinate

Abscissa

Applicate

None of the above

Correct answer is: Abscissa
x — axis is also called abscissa.

2

What is the correct way of representing a point on a graph?

(X-coordinate, X-coordinate)

(Y-coordinate, X-coordinate)

(Y-coordinate, Y-coordinate)

(X-coordinate, Y-coordinate)

Correct answer is: (X-coordinate, Y-coordinate)
(X-coordinate, Y-coordinate) is the correct way to represent a point.

3

How is the origin point represented on a graph?

(0,0)

(0,x)

(y,0)

(x,y)

Correct answer is: (0,0)
(0, 0) is the coordinates of origin on the graph.

4

A point (0,5) will be lie on the

X-axis

Y-axis

Origin

None of the above

Correct answer is: Y-axis
As abscissa (x- coordinate) is 0. So, given point lies on the y-axis.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why are the X- and Y-axis important?

The X- and Y-axis are essential for a graphical representation of data. These axes make the coordinate plane. The data is located in coordinates according to their distance from the X- and Y-axis. Graphical representation helps in solving complicated equations.

How is the coordinate plane formed?

A coordinate plane is a two-dimensional plane formed by the intersection of two number lines. One of these number lines is a horizontal number line called the x-axis and the other number line is a vertical number line called the y-axis (or ordinate). These two number lines intersect each other perpendicularly and form the coordinate plane.

What are quadrants in a graph?

The two number lines divide the coordinate plane into 4 regions. These regions are called quadrants. The quadrants are denoted by roman numerals and each of these quadrants have their own properties. X and Y have different signs in each quadrant.

• Quadrant I: (x,y)
• Quadrant II: (-x,y),
• Quadrant III: (-x,-y),
• Quadrant IV: (x,-y).

How are the X- and Y-axis different?

The X-axis gives the horizontal location of a point, and the Y-axis gives a vertical location of a point.

how to recognize that the chart is lying — What to read on vc.ru

Why the same data on the charts can tell completely different stories and be misleading — in an excerpt from the book “Complete nonsense! Skepticism in the world of big data” from MIF publishing house.

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views

Data visualization can be misleading, both intentionally and accidentally. Luckily, most of these tricks are easy to spot if you know where to look.

Many charts, including bar charts and scatter charts, use horizontal and vertical axes to position data, defining the boundaries of numeric values. Always look at the axes when you see a chart that has them.

Designers use a number of tricks to manipulate axes on a chart. In 2016, columnist Professor Andrew Potter caused a sensation with his article for the Canadian news magazine Maclean’s. In it, the author stated that many of the Canadian city of Quebec’s problems can be boiled down to the fact that «compared to the rest of the country, Quebec is an almost pathologically alienated and mistrustful community, lacking many of the basic forms of social capital that the rest of Canadians take for granted. » . In an attempt to corroborate Potter’s claim, the magazine then published the following chart:0003

On the face of it, the diagram seems to provide solid support for Potter’s claim. Confidence bars in Quebec are much lower than in the rest of Canada. But wait and take a look at the vertical (y) axis. The bars don’t go all the way to zero, only 35, 45, and 50, respectively. By cutting the Quebec columns from the bottom, the designer visually increased the difference between this province and the rest of the country.

If the lines had gone to zero, the diagram would have given a different impression:

In the new chart, we see that the level of trust in Quebec is indeed slightly lower, but now we have a more accurate impression of the differences. It was this visualization that needed to be published. After readers noticed the axis manipulation in the original diagram and complained, Maclean’s published it in a corrected form.

A bar chart without an obvious axis can be misleading. Here is an example of what was posted on Instagram* during the election campaign of Hillary Clinton:

Here the columns go from left to right, not from bottom to top. This is appropriate because each of the bands shows a category for which there is no natural order other than a numerical expression, such as year, age, income level. What is not justified is the disproportion of the bands to the proportions they represent. The length of the first four is relatively correct and very close to the declared full length of the segment from left to right. The last two are substantially longer than they should be, given the numbers they illustrate.

The lane for white women is marked 75%, although it stretches 78% of the way to the right. The Asian women’s strip is even more misleading. It’s 84% ​​signed but stretched out 90% on its way to the right edge. As a result, perceived differences between the earnings of non-ethnic women and those of white and Asian women are exaggerated. We can read the numbers, but we get impressions by perceiving the visual length of the stripes .

While in a histogram (bar chart) the bars must start at zero, in a line chart it is not necessary to include zero in the axis of the dependent variable. The line chart below illustrates how much since 19In the 1970s, the proportion of families where both parents worked increased in the state of California. Like the original Québec confidence graph, it uses a vertical axis that does not drop to zero.

What’s the difference? Why does the vertical axis in a bar chart always have to start at zero, while in a line chart it doesn’t? The two visual formats tell different stories. By design, a bar chart illustrates the absolute values ​​of the variables in each category, while a line chart focuses on how one variable changes as another changes.

In fact, line graphs can sometimes be misleading precisely because their vertical axis goes to zero. One infamous example, titled «The Only Global Warming Chart You Need From Now On», was created by Stephen Hayward for the Powerline blog and went viral after the National Review posted it on Twitter in late 2015. Explaining his schedule, Hayward wrote: “What, is it not so scary now? In fact, you hardly notice the warming.”

This is stupid. The absolute temperature is irrelevant to the situation. There is no point in zooming in to such an extent that any changes are erased. If we want to draw conclusions about how much the climate is changing, we need a scale similar to the following graph.

The slyness of the graphic prepared for the Powerline blog is that Hayward chose a graphic representation that does not match the story he is telling. Hayward claims to be writing about the change (or lack thereof) of temperature on Earth. However, instead of choosing a graph that would show the changes, he purposefully used a graph that hides them and reflects the absolute values.

We need to be even more careful when the chart has two vertical axes with different scales. By selectively scaling the axes that are related to each other, designers can make the data tell almost any story. For example, a 2015 study in a second-rate journal attempted to resurrect a long-debunked conspiracy theory linking autism spectrum disorders (ASD) to a combination vaccine. As evidence, a graph was given that looked like the one shown below.

Even if we are willing to put aside the serious problems with sampling and data analysis, what conclusions are we going to have to draw from the relationship this graph points to? At first glance, the RAS line follows the line of vaccines rather closely. But look at the axes. The frequency of autism spectrum disorders is marked on a scale from 0 to 0.6%. Vaccination coverage is targeted on a scale of 86 to 95%. Thus, during this period we see a large increase in the incidence of autism spectrum disorders, almost 10 times from 2000 to 2007, but very little change in vaccination coverage. This becomes clear if we correct the scale. We don’t need to show both trends on the same scale, but we do need to make sure both axes include zero.

Looking at the data in this way, it is clear that relatively small changes in vaccination coverage are unlikely to cause relatively large changes in ASD levels.

Here is another example from a medical article in an obscure scientific journal. With this chart, the authors attempt to illustrate the temporal correlation between thyroid cancer and use of the pesticide glyphosate, Roundup.

Of course, Roundup poisoning can have serious health consequences. But whatever they may be, this particular illustration is unconvincing. First of all, correlation does not mean causation. For example, you can find a similar correlation between mobile phone use and thyroid cancer, or even between mobile phone use and Roundup! Below we have added information about mobile phones to the diagram.

If the logic of the original statement is to be believed, then perhaps one should be worried about the fact that mobile phones cause thyroid cancer, or maybe the spread of Roundup is causing an increase in the number of mobile phones.

Let’s now look at the chart axes. The vertical axis on the left, associated with the columns, does not go to zero. We have already explained why this can lead to misperceptions of the data. But it’s even worse. Both the scale and the vertical axis cutoff on the right have been changed so that the glyphosate curve follows the peaks of the cancer frequency bars. Even more remarkable is the following: in order to make the curve behave this way, the axis had to reach negative values ​​- the use of -10,000 tons of glyphosate. It’s just absurd. We noted that the vertical axis does not have to go to zero in a line chart, but if it goes down to a negative value for a parameter that can only be positive, consider it an alarm.

Most often we see fraud with a vertical axis, but the horizontal axis can also be used to mislead. Perhaps the easiest way is to select a data range that hides part of the story. In July 2018, the value of Facebook shares collapsed to an unprecedented depth for the US stock market after the company presented its financial statements for the second quarter of 2018. These results fell short of Wall Street’s expectations, triggering a stock crash. A Business Insider headline read: «Facebook Stock Crash Cuts $120 Billion in Market Value: Biggest U.S. Stock Market Drop in History.» Below was a chart of Facebook stock prices over a period of four days.

On the one hand, the decline was indeed significant, but the initial value of Facebook shares was very high. In general, the company is doing very well, if we put the fall in July 2018 in the context of a chart that spans five years instead of four days.

If we describe the situation in this way, we will see a completely different story about the disaster of Facebook on the stock exchange. We will see a quick recovery from previous downs. We are not so much interested in whether the graph in Business Insider was misleading, but it is important to show how the range affects the perception of information. Keep this in mind when looking at line charts and similar visualizations. Make sure the timeline you choose is appropriate for the point of view the graph is trying to illustrate.

Let’s look at another way to fool around with the horizontal axis. The chart below suggests that CO2 emissions have reached a plateau. The accompanying text states: «Over the past few years, carbon dioxide emissions around the world have stabilized compared to previous years.»

But look what happens to the horizontal axis. Each point corresponds to an interval of 30 years until we reach 1991. The next step is already 10 years old. Then 9 years. Further, each interval is equal to only one year. If we redraw this graph so that the x-axis has a constant scale throughout, we will see a different picture.

Carbon dioxide emissions may be rising at a slower rate now, but it doesn’t look like they’ve reached a plateau.

In general, it is important to look at the unevenness and scaling of the x-axis. Something similar happens with histograms (bar charts), when each bar displays the total data in some interval. Look at the following bar chart from The Wall Street Journal article on President Obama’s tax plan.

The chart tries to show who bears the brunt of taxation in the US. Each column represents taxpayers of a certain income level. To do this, the data about them were summarized. Income levels are shown on the horizontal axis, while the vertical represents the total income of each group. Most of the taxable income, according to these figures, is created by the middle class, that is, people with incomes from $50,000 to $200,000 a year, whose column rose above all. (The $200,000 to $500,000 income group also has a large share of the income, but even by The Wall Street Journal standards, it’s hardly middle class.)

The author claims that most of the tax burden under Obama’s plan will inevitably fall on the shoulders of the middle class, not the rich.

“The rich aren’t rich enough to fund Mr. Obama’s grandiose government ambitions even before his healthcare reform plan goes into effect. Who, then, should bear the tax burden? Well, in 2008, about $5. 65 trillion of total taxable income for all individual taxpayers was created by people with average earnings. The distribution is illustrated by a diagram. The big column in the center is who the Democrats will go after, for exactly the same reason Willie Sutton robbed banks.

*This is a reference to the historical anecdote about the legendary robber Willie Sutton, who allegedly asked «Why did you rob all these banks?» replied: «Because there is money.»

But take a closer look at this diagram. The income intervals that correspond to each column of the histogram vary greatly in size. At the beginning, each next interval is $5,000 or $10,000 larger than the next one. Not surprisingly, the bars are low. These are narrow intervals! Then, as soon as we get to the middle class—those who, according to the authors, bear the main burden of taxes—the intervals widen radically. We have two intervals with an additional $25,000, and then an interval that is $100,000 more. And then the intervals only grow. This choice of distribution intervals creates the illusion that the main taxable income is at the center of the distribution.

Political scientist Ken Schultz set out to show how a designer can tell completely different stories if he is allowed to choose the spacing width. He took the same tax data but arranged the intervals differently to tell three different stories.

By varying the size of the income intervals on these histograms, Schultz was able to create stories about how we need to tax the poor, the middle class (now defined as people with less than $100,000 of taxable income), and the very rich.

The Wall Street Journal may not have tried to mislead readers. It turns out that it is at such intervals that the tax administration collects its data on the income of taxpayers. But, regardless of the author’s motives, you need to be careful, because how the information is organized can affect the meaning of the story.

Let’s look at another example of how data aggregation can be deceiving. The data in the following chart should illustrate the extent to which genetics predict academic achievement. The horizontal axis is the influence of genetics, and the vertical axis is the level of academic achievement in high school. The trend looks extremely strong. At first glance, you might think that genes play a huge role in academic achievement.

However, the data shown in this way is false. The problem is with aggregation. All indicators within each of the ten intervals along the axis are collected together, and the resulting average indicator is displayed in the diagram. By taking the average in this way, the authors masked a wide variety of individual ratings. The raw data shown in the following chart tells a different story. Although this is exactly the information that we used to make the previous diagram. But it looks more like the aftermath of a gunshot than a strong linear trend!

It turns out that the genetic factor is responsible for only 9% of the variation in academic achievement. If one is going to aggregate data, then a box-and-whisker chart can show the range within each group much better.

Fortunately, the authors of this article have suggested both options, so we can see how deceptive a chart with summary data can be. But not everyone reveals their secrets. Sometimes in a scientific paper or news about the results of a study, only summary data is shown. Be careful, otherwise you will be led to believe that the trend is much stronger than it actually is.

* Meta, the parent company of Instagram, has been designated an extremist organization and banned in Russia.

Adding notes and decorations to diagrams

8.1

Scales and axes

8.2

Arrows and values ​​

8.3

Symbols

8.1 Scales and axes

8.1.1 Value axis

In the menu:	Diagram
Menu item:

Use this function to display a numerical scale of values ​​in your chart, represented by ticked axis lines or grid lines. Typically, the y-axis in a chart is the value axis.

Note: The x-axis of the Mekko chart is also the value axis. Scatter and bubble charts also have two value axes that are always displayed. Also, the x-axis of a graph can be a value axis rather than a category axis (see the Graph section). The x-axes of other charts are standard category axes.

Change the scale of the value axis

When the value axis is selected, it has three handles, shown below for the axis line and grid lines. When using gridlines, select one of them to display the axis handles.

• think-cell normally scales the value axes. However, you can manually scale the value axis by dragging the handles at the end of the value axis. Values ​​on an axis should always include a range between the minimum and maximum values ​​in the table. If you do not want to display a particular value, remove it from the table or hide the corresponding table row or column. Automatic scaling can be restored by dragging the handles until the Automatic scaling pop-up appears, or by selecting
  Reset to automatic scale
  from the context menu of the scaled chart element. If you hold down the 9 key while dragging0147 Alt , the value axis scale will return to automatic mode.
• Value axis tick spacing is usually calculated by think-cell. However, you can manually change it by dragging the middle handle. While dragging, the handle will jump to the supported tick interval and the tooltip will show the selected interval. If you release the marker, the selected tick interval will be applied to the axis. Automatic division spacing can be restored by decreasing the interval until the word Automatic appears on the tooltip.
• The Same Scale button can be used to apply the same scale to multiple charts. For more information, see Same Scale.

Changing the type of value axis

The position of segments, lines and areas on the axis can be determined based on their absolute values ​​or relative percentage (as a percentage) of the entire category. Accordingly, you can select Absolute and % from the Axis Type drop-down list on the Axis contextual toolbar.

If you enable a percentage axis for a stacked chart, it will be converted to a 100% chart. The grouping chart will be converted to a stacked chart because only relative shares are added to the bar that represents 100% of the category. If you select the percentage axis on the chart, it will be converted to an area chart.

Reverse Value Axis Direction

Scatter, Bubble, and Graphs support reversing an axis by selecting Values ​​Descending from the Axis Direction drop-down menu on the Axis Context-Sensitive Toolbar. On a graph with two axes, you can choose to reverse the order to emphasize negative correlations. Column charts, grouped charts, and area charts are mirrored when the axis direction is changed.

Positioning the value axis

The Y value axis can be moved by selecting and dragging the axis with the mouse. As you drag, the available alternate axis positions are highlighted. Drag the axis to the desired location and release it to move.

As you select and drag the y-axis of the chart values, you will notice that the two dots on each side of the chart are highlighted. If you drag an axis to one of these positions, the Y-axis will be placed on the corresponding side of the chart.

However, the selected location also changes the location cells for chart. Two cell placement styles are supported for graphs.

• Cells on categories The y-axis intersects the x-axis at the center of the category. In this case, data points of the first category are placed directly on the Y-axis.
• Cells between categories The y-axis intersects the x-axis between categories. Therefore, the data points are offset from the border of the chart.

Regardless of the axis cells, the position of the data points on the x-axis always corresponds to the center of the category.

Selecting one of the internal highlights will enable Cells on Categories, and selecting External Highlights will enable Cells between Categories.

The and buttons in the value axis context menu can also be used to change the cell mode.

Placing tick marks

Tick marks are usually displayed to the left of the axis line or grid lines. To move them to the right, select one of the tick marks and drag it to a different position.

Value axis context menu

Value axes have their own context menu. It displays the following buttons.

Add title

Add axis name. You can drag the title to move it. You can also add a title to the chart’s baseline, even if it’s not a value axis.

Add tick marks

Add tick marks.

Add divisions

Add graduations.

Add grid lines

Add grid lines.

Add axis line

Add axis line. Only in the grid line context menu.

Set log/linear scale

Select logarithmic or linear scale (see section Logarithmic scale).

Set Same Scale/Reset to Independent Scale

Set the selected axes to the same scale or independent scales (see Same scale).

Scale by data

Restore automatic determination of the scale interval and divisions if they have been changed by the user.

Add Gap

Add a break at the current position of the mouse pointer (see Breaking the Value Axis).

Set cells on/between categories

Changing the mode cells graphics.

When necessary, the buttons serve as switches for the corresponding function, ie if the divisions already exist, the same button deletes them, since they cannot be added a second time.

8.1.2 Value axis break

In menu:	Segment, axis, line, area
Menu item:

Use a break in the value axis to make a large segment smaller and improve the readability of small segments. To add a value axis break, click on the part of the segment or axis where you want to insert the break and open the context menu. When adding a value axis break, the position at which you right-click the segment or axis matters.

Any inserted break applies to the value axis (if shown) and to all segments that use the same axis range. Therefore, it is not possible to add an axis break at any position if there is a segment boundary in the chart columns. A break can only be added if there is some portion of the value axis at the mouse pointer location that is large enough to contain the two lines that represent the break. The break also applies to the axes and segments of any chart that is set to the same scale (see Same Scale).

This is shown in the following example. A break cannot be added to the top of the second column because the top of the third column is too close. However, there is enough room for a break in the range of the third column segment. Since both columns use this range of the value axis, both segments will be split:

Change the extent of the break

You can adjust the size of the split segment by dragging the lines that appear when you select the break. These lines indicate the range of the scale, which is compressed to save space. Drag the lines to select the size of the compressed portion of the scale. If you drag the line far enough that the compressed range takes up as much space as it originally needed, the gap will disappear. By default, the selected portion of the scale shrinks as much as possible to leave enough room for the break lines to appear.

Available break types

think-cell supports two break shapes. A straight break (as shown above) is often used for standard histograms. The wavy break shown below helps save space on charts with wide and adjacent bars. If there is enough space, you can switch between shapes using the Set Wavy/Straight Shape option in the break context menu.

Note: Graphs, area charts, and Mekko charts only support wavy break.

8.1.3 Date axis

If the table contains strictly incrementing years, the number forms of the axis labels can be changed to one of the date formats, for example yy for two-digit years, yyyy for four-digit years, and other formats containing days and months ( see Number Format and Date Format Codes).

If the labels are formatted as dates, or if in Excel the cell format Date is selected for all category cells, you are using a date axis. When changing the scale of the date axis, months and weeks can be used as divisions.

When using the date axis, the floating toolbar displays an additional Week Starts drop-down menu that allows you to select which day the new week starts. If you select the division interval automatically or manually with a week, think-cell will place dates with that day of the week on the divisions.

Two and four digit years can be combined on the date axis. For example, you can use four digits for the first and last category, and two for other categories.

To select the number of digits, click on the desired label and change the format. think-cell will automatically change the other labels for a consistent display. For example, if you select the first label and use the two-digit date format yy , all labels will switch to two digits, because it’s rare that only two digits are used for the first label. However, if you select one of the labels in the middle and use two digits, the first label will retain four digits, but all other labels between the first and last will use two digits:

8.1.4 Same scale

If there are several similar charts on the same slide, you should often use the same scale for them. The physical dimensions of the segments of two charts can only be compared if their scales match.

The following example shows two charts with the same size but different scales. Notice that the height of the bar representing 7 units in the waterfall chart is the same as the height of the bar representing 47 units in the bar chart.

To make segments from different diagrams visually comparable, select the segments from these diagrams together, for example by holding Ctrl and clicking the segments (see Multiple selection). Then open the think-cell context menu and click
Set the same scale
to make the smaller scale the same size as the larger one. For the example above, the resulting charts would look like this:

If the data represented by the chart changes, the chart scale may change. For all other charts, the same scale is selected, which is then also corrected (including adding axis breaks or changing their size).

Instead of selecting multiple segments, you can also select multiple axes, gridlines, or data points, one for each chart that should use the same scale. Then open the think-cell context menu and click the Same scale button. Various combinations are also available to you, for example, for a graph and a histogram, you can select a data point on the graph and a segment on the histogram.

To return to automatic scaling, select a segment, axis, grid line, or data point and select
Restore auto scale
in the context menu. If you are not sure which charts have the same scale, the easiest way is to restore the same scale for all charts, and then select the appropriate parts in the desired charts and make the desired scale active.

In charts with two value axes, such as graphs and scatter plots, a second button is available Same scale for x-axis. You can select the same scale for each axis independently of the others. For example, you can choose the same scale for two charts on the x-axis so that they span the same date range, with the y-axis corresponding to each chart’s data.

8.1.5 Logarithmic scale

You can enable the logarithmic scale using the Set Logarithmic Scale button on the value axis context menu. To return to a linear scale, click the Set Linear Scale button.

Note: Logarithmic scale axis divisions can only be powers of 10, such as 0.1, 1, 10. The axis must also start at a power of 10 and end at a power of 10.

Logarithmic scale is not supported if it is does not fit mathematically. Negative values ​​are placed on the baseline and an exclamation mark is displayed next to the label to indicate that the value cannot be represented on a logarithmic scale. Also, an axis always uses a linear scale if multiple series that are summed to give a total value are related to the axis.

8.1.6 Second Axis

Charts containing lines can have an additional Y-axis. You can add a second Y-axis and link a line to it. To do this, select the line and press the button
Make Right/Left Axis
in the context menu of the line. If the chart has two Y-axes, you can use the same Make Right/Left Axis button to change the Y-axis relationship of individual lines in the chart. Or you can choose
Add Second Y-Axis
in the chart’s context menu. The second axis is a full value axis (Value Axis). It can scale independently.

8.1.7 Spacing between categories

The spacing between columns in a chart is determined by the column width and chart size. You can add extra spacing between individual column pairs by inserting a category spacing.

To do this, click on the baseline and drag the marker to the right. The width of the gap between categories is equal to the width of the column plus the width of one gap, with the marker anchored at multiples of that gap width.

When adding spaces between categories, the width of the columns is maintained, resulting in an increase or decrease in the overall width of the chart.

Hold down the Ctrl key while dragging to maintain the overall width of the chart. Column widths can be increased or decreased to match the spacing between categories.

Note: In some cases, a break in the baseline (see Category Axis Break) is an alternative to spacing between categories to save space.

8.1.8 Category axis break

In menu:	Spacing between category axis columns
Menu item:

Category axis break indicates a break in the category axis scale. To insert it, right-click on the category axis between the two columns and select the appropriate menu item.

8.2 Arrows and values ​​

8.2.1 Difference arrows

In the menu:	Chart, segment-in-column, and waterfall, point-on-line, and area charts
Menu items:

Difference arrows can be used in charts to visualize the difference between pairs of bars, segments, and points. The difference is calculated automatically and updated when the underlying data changes. The difference text label (see Text Labels) supports font, number format, and label content properties (see Font, Number Format, Label Content).

think-cell supports two styles of difference arrows: level difference arrows and total difference arrows. Level difference arrows show the difference between pairs of segments or points in the chart, and total difference arrows show the difference between column totals.

Level difference arrow

To add level difference arrows, click the or button in the context menu. You can use the handles that appear when you select the difference arrow to set two values ​​for comparison. The ends of the difference arrow can be anchored to column segments, data points, or a value line if they exist (see Value Line).

By default, the inserted difference arrow goes from the selected segment or category to the top segment of the next category. You can also define the required start and end segment/category for the difference arrow by selecting the start and end segments at the same time. Right-click on one of them and select Add Level Difference Arrow. To select multiple segments at the same time, hold down the Ctrl key while selecting (see Multiple selection). When working with a graph or area chart, select the appropriate data points instead of segments.

If the arrow is too small and the bubble covers it, the bubble is automatically placed next to the arrow. To manually optimize the layout, you can drag the arrow, as well as its label, to a different location (Auto Place Labels). To place an arrow between two columns, you can create an additional gap between the columns (Category Gap).

Total Difference Arrow

To add Total Difference Arrows, click the or button on the context menu and connect the ends of the difference arrow to the categories or columns you want to compare.

Hand modes

You can use three hand modes. The button in the context menu changes accordingly, and the number in the label is recalculated.

Displays an arrow pointing in one direction and calculates the relative difference.

A double-sided arrow arrow is displayed and the absolute difference is calculated.

An arrow pointing in a different direction is displayed and the relative difference is calculated.

8.2.2 Arrow CAGR

Menu:	Diagram, segment
Menu item:

This function displays the cumulative annual growth rate. The date ranges on which the calculation is based are retrieved from the table cells associated with the category labels. CAGR is calculated automatically and updated when the underlying data changes. For correct calculations, the corresponding cells of the table must contain the correct dates.

CAGR from category A to category B is calculated from

where n is the number of years in the date range. The convention «30/360 days» is used to determine n if it is not an integer.

Automatic CAGR is based on a text label (Text Labels) and supports font and number format properties (Font, Number Format). The arrow itself supports the color property (Color and fill).

By default, only one CAGR value is inserted that spans the range from the selected category to the last category on the chart. You can use the markers that appear after selecting the CAGR arrow to set the start and end categories.

You can also quickly specify the start and end CAGR categories. To do this, select a segment in the start category and a segment in the end category. Then right-click on one of them and select Add Aggregate Growth Arrow. If you select segments in more than two categories, you will get a CAGR value for each pair of consecutively selected categories. To select multiple segments at the same time, hold down the Ctrl key while selecting (see Multiple selection). When working with a graph or area chart, select the appropriate data points instead of segments.

8.2.3

series CAGR

The CAGR arrow is always calculated from the column totals. However, you may also want to display the cumulative annual growth of one of the series.

It can be shown in row labels. Simply select the label and the CAGR option in the label content control on the floating toolbar.

The CAGR will now be calculated based on the series.

To select all row labels in one step, press the first label and then, while holding down the Shift , click on the last label (see Multiple selection).

8.2.4 Value line

In the menu:	Diagram
Menu item:

This function draws a line parallel to the x-axis to visualize a specific value. You can create multiple value lines for a chart and place the line label to the left or right of the chart.

When appropriate, the value line, after initialization, is tied to the arithmetic mean (stacked or clustered bar chart) or weighted mean (Mekko chart) of the column totals. In this case, the value is calculated automatically and also updated automatically when the data changes.

You can drag the line as needed. To increase the precision of your drag, use the PowerPoint controls to zoom in on the slide. You can also use the arrow keys ← → ↑ ↓ and to shift the line to a specific value. When using the cursor keys, the line moves gradually according to the label number format.

As always, you can add your own text to the label or replace the default label with your own content. For more information about labels and text boxes, see Text Labels. You can also change the font (see Font) and number format of the label (see Number Format).

8.2.5 Indicator 100%

In menu:	Diagram
Menu item:

This function displays the 100% mark. It is enabled by default. You can place the label to the left or right of the chart.

8.2.6 Row connectors

In the menu:	Diagram, segment
Menu item:

You can add row connector lines to an entire chart or a single segment. When you click a connector item in the segment menu, a connector line is created in the upper right corner of that segment. For a connector to be part of a waterfall calculation, use the appropriate waterfall connector (see Waterfall Chart). You can also use generic connectors (see Generic connectors) if you can’t create the connections you want with standard connectors.

8.2.7 Universal connectors

Elements menu icon:

Universal connectors are different from the other decorations described in this chapter because they are not specific to a particular element or component. Therefore, they are not available in the think-cell context menu.

Instead, you can insert universal connectors using the think-cell toolbar. Double-click the toolbar button to insert universal connectors. To exit insert mode, press the button again or press the 9 key0147 Esc .

Each diagram element can provide connection points. A universal connector can connect to any two connection points, which can belong to the same or different elements. Use a generic connector if you need a custom connector that is not supported by the diagram itself.

The universal connector can be used to link two different diagrams. Connector end markers snap to connectable points as they move. The marker in the middle of the connector can be moved to change the straight connector to a right angled connector.

Note: Universal connector visually connects two objects, but does not affect the calculation of the waterfall chart. For a connector to be part of a waterfall calculation, use the appropriate waterfall connector (see Waterfall Chart).