New research has found that bar graphs are frequently misunderstood. The study demonstrates that people who view exactly the same graph often walk away with completely different understandings of ...

Nevertheless, across many different types of trend participants consistently thought sales would be lower when the data were presented as bar charts than line graphs or point graphs.

William Playfair, the father of data visualisation, changed the way we understand information. His bar graphs, pie charts, and line graphs remain essential tools today, yet his name is barely known.