Visualising the evolution of Dengue in 5 countries

Visual Design
#1

Hi everyone,

I have created this stream graph visualisation using the data provided by the Project Tychoo ( https://www.tycho.pitt.edu/ )

dengue5countries
dengue5countries848×500 29 KB

Name of Tool : RawGraphs

Countries : China, El Salvador, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Venezuela

Disease : Dengue

Years : 1965 to 2010

Visual Mappings :

  • X axis : year
  • Y axis : number of infected people
  • Color : each color represents a country

Unique Observation : the number of infected people rocketed in every country except Sri Lanka during the early 2000’s. China was the most affected country at that time.

Data Preparation : selected data about several diseases and put them together to allow comparisons

Source: https://www.tycho.pitt.edu/

DOI : 10.25337/T7/ptycho.v2.0/MY.38362002

Questions:

  • What can I do to make it easier to identify a country from an other in the bit from 1965 to 1990 ?
  • Are the colors I have chosen alright ? Maybe they are a bit pale but it seems to me that it is easy to identify a country from an other
  • Are there any other types of visual layouts that you would recommend to visualise this set of data ?

Thank you very much :slight_smile:

#2

Hi Akrish,

The stream graph looks exciting. But, I think a simple stacked line chart would do you a better favor. For example, the distortions here are very strong. Let me answer your questions one-by-one:

  • What can I do to make it easier to identify a country from an other in the bit from 1965 to 1990 ?

As I said, try a stacked line chart.

  • Are the colors I have chosen alright ? Maybe they are a bit pale but it seems to me that it is easy to identify a country from an other.

I agree. Keep the colors. Alternatively, you can check for color palettes that harmonize better: http://vrl.cs.brown.edu/color

  • Are there any other types of visual layouts that you would recommend to visualise this set of data ?

Stacked bar charts :slight_smile: or simple line charts. Can you try and post your iteration?

cheers,
ben

#3

Hi akrish,

First of all I find your stream graph interesting. For the colors I recommend to take a look at the color wheel. You can simply choose the color from the wheel in a 72° manner to get a clear distinction between the colors.

You mentioned that the y-axis corresponds to the number of infected people. Is it supposed to hide a y-label in the graph?

Bests,
chris