Presenting Your Results

Abstract

Graphs are the main way that scientists tell stories. So, when students prepare a graph, put a lot of thought into it. Think carefully about the axis scales. In some cases, in order to tell the full story of the data, they may need to present the same data twice, with the axes scaled in two different ways. Images must always include indications of both the lateral and color scales. The lateral scale can be indicated either by a scale bar or in the caption. The color scale is best indicated by a color scale bar used as an inset or presented to the side of the image. Diagrams convey the key information much more clearly than photos, which always include extraneous objects, and for which it’s hard to get the lighting correct. Diagrams are often used, especially in talks and posters, to convey experimental processes. When possible, coordinate the colors used in the diagram with colors used for graphs.