Graphical Perception: Theory, Experimentation, and Application to the Development of Graphical Methods Author(s): William S. Cleveland and Robert McGill Source: Journal of the American Statistical Association, Vol. 79, No. 387 (Sep., 1984), pp. 531-554 Published by: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. on behalf of the American Statistical Association Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2288400 Accessed: 01-03-2016 14:55 UTC Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at http://www.jstor.org/page/ info/about/policies/terms.jsp JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact
[email protected]. Taylor & Francis, Ltd. and American Statistical Association are collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Journal of the American Statistical Association. http://www.jstor.org This content downloaded from 162.105.192.28 on Tue, 01 Mar 2016 14:55:50 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Graphical Perception: Theory, Experimentation, and Application to the Development of Graphical Methods WILLIAM S. CLEVELAND and ROBERT McGILL* The subject of graphical methods for data analysis and largely unscientific. This is why Cox (1978) argued, for data presentation needs a scientific foundation. In this "There is a major need for a theory of graphical methods" article we take a few steps in the direction of establishing (p.