one
Chart format problem
The chart doesn't fit the page scale.
The illustration of a paper needs to have a proper proportion of photos and words, which is readable and can make all the contents (except the organizational structure) clear without enlargement or reduction. If you need a magnifying glass to read your chart, a bad reading experience will greatly reduce the quality of your paper. However, the editor found that the scale of the chart is often wrong in the paper: the scale of the picture and text is out of balance, the font size in the picture is inconsistent, and the scale of different pictures in the series of pictures is not harmonious ... Sometimes the magnification of different pictures in a group of photos is different, which will mislead readers.
Chart design defect
Chart design is also worth noting. The statistical chart design is not standardized, and there are too many rows in the table; Or the table uses three lines, and other places are solid lines, and the format is not uniform ... These charts need to be "recreated".
two
Chart quality problem
The chart is not clear
Clarity is the most important point of the chart. Most journals will indicate in the guide that the minimum pixel of a picture is 300dpi, which must meet the requirements in drawing. In addition, pay attention to the format of the picture. Most journals accept JPEG and TIFF formats. For the sake of safety, when converting to the format required by periodicals, you should also remember to save the pictures in the original format.
The chart is not the original file.
In order to save trouble, some students will directly put the low-resolution chart data taken by mobile phones into their papers. Although it can be seen clearly on the mobile phone screen, on paper, especially in Word or PDF documents, the size of the picture will be compressed, thus becoming blurred. Some students copy charts directly from Excel, and the result is that they cannot be clearly displayed in word. You must use the "Insert Object -excel Chart" function in Word to insert it. This can also ensure that you can edit the chart directly through Word in the future, including modifying (axis, label, line thickness) and so on. Otherwise, once the contents of the table are modified, the alignment and frame of the table will change.
three
Data quality problem
Incomplete data
There is a gap in the data in the chart, which is a big taboo in chart making;
The numerical calculation is not accurate
The data in the table are often calculated from the original data, so most of them are not integers. When calculating data, you should keep the same decimal places. At the same time, the effective digits of the same index number should be the same, and the insufficient part should be filled with "0". For percentages, it should be noted that the sum of percentages is 100%.
Improper arrangement of data
In data processing, we should pay attention to the inversion and improper arrangement of grouping variables and observation indexes in the table. Data should follow the principle of vertical arrangement of similar data, and improper arrangement will transmit wrong information and affect data comparison.
four
Chart labeling problem
Table title is not accurate.
The title of the table is an important part of the table and a summary of the contents in the table, which should be orderly, concise and accurate.
Incorrect annotation
The notation should not be too simple, resulting in unclear notation, omission of units and special symbols; At the same time, the notation should not be too complicated. Table notes are necessary supplements and explanations to the relevant contents in the table, and should be concise and to the point. If you need more remarks, you should introduce them in the text. The calculation formula of the data in the table should be introduced in the "Materials and Methods" part of the paper and should not be included in the table notes.
Original data stack
The chart is a summary of the results, not a list of research processes, and it is not necessary to show all the original data in the paper.
Abbreviations and nonstandard quantities and units
The names of indicators listed in the table should use fixed abbreviations. Under special circumstances, when using unusual units and abbreviations, it should be explained in the table notes. All legal units of calculation should use symbols, and units should also follow the naming principles of international standards.
five
Graphic consistency
The terms, symbols and units in the chart should be consistent with the text description, and should be mentioned in the text accordingly, so as to show the integrity and unity of the whole paper. The same narrative content should be expressed in words, tables and statistics according to logic, which is convenient for understanding the theme and essence of the paper. Never repeat the narrative.