WE are proud of our "visual display of quantitative informa-

tion," to use Professor Edward R. Tufle s description of

the process, especially when we look at the standards of

presentation found elsewhere. Although matters do seem to be im-

proving, we still see countless grossly misleading or pointless charts

in the business and financial press. The most common of these in-

volve the graphical presentation of relatively small data sets, the use

of arithmetic scales for series that grow over time, and the use of

two-dimensional figures or glyphs to represent one-dimensional data.

The latter include such devices as stick figures, or pictures of little

bags of money. The problem with these is that a figure that is, say,

twice as tall as another is four times as large. The relationship in-

tended by the chart maker or perceived by the reader may then only

be guessed at.

When we prepare charts, our foremost criterion is "data density"--

graphical presentations are best used to present data that are too vo-

luminous to provide within text or in a table. Thus, whenever space

permits, we plot data series as far back as they are available. We also

use logarithmic or ratio scales (on which equal percentage changes

appear as equal distances) whenever appropriate. Exceptions to this

practice include instances where a series contains negative values, a

series is a ratio or proportion, and, occasionally, when the absolute

value of a series is of interest. We also try to avoid grid lines, which

continue to appear in the charts of many publications. These may

have been needed to achieve accuracy when things were done by

hand, but they only add clutter and confusion to computer-generated

graphics. The vertical shaded bars in some charts indicate periods of

economic recession in the United States, as identified by the Na-

tional Bureau of Economic Research.

We often receive compliments on our graphical presentations as

well as requests for copies of specific charts apart from our publica-

tions. We are pleased, therefore, to present this collection of AIER

charts, which we hope our readers will find timely, useful and infor-

mative. We invite comments and suggestions for future updates of

this booklet.