Pictures should be professional first, because pictures are a data "compressed package" of the whole paper. So we need to show pictures in a professional way, so that reviewers and readers can quickly understand these data.

Although most magazines do not stipulate the maximum number of pictures, there are certain restrictions on the layout of papers in order to ensure the total number of papers published each year. For example, the types of articles published in Nature are generally not more than 3-4 charts.

So when drawing, you need to use professional drawing software, including data analysis, to ensure the integrity of the picture.

2 rationality

The second requirement of pictures is organization. Now there are many groups of data in experimental analysis or other data analysis. How to clearly summarize and present the data of each group is very important. For example, when there are three working conditions in our experiment, we need to clearly express the data of the three working conditions and the laws reflected behind them.

In order to ensure the organization of pictures, we need to make the data easy to distinguish, the relationship reflected clearly visible, and the logo in the pictures clear.

3 independence

Independence means that every graph in the text is an independent whole. When a commentator or reader looks at a picture alone, he can clearly understand the meaning of the picture without looking at the context carefully. If the picture is not clearly explained, readers or commentators need to look at the specific details carefully in the context, which is very time-consuming and laborious.

In order to achieve the independence of the picture, we need to let the picture express its meaning independently, maintain the integrity of the picture and make the conditions clear.

Some authors are not used to or often forget to explain the meaning of a picture in the title, which is a very bad habit. Although many people think that "the smell of wine is not afraid of the depth of the alley", the era when the information explosion made readers repeatedly scrutinize the meaning behind the paper has passed. We have also read many classic papers, and their expressions are exquisite and meticulous.

4 Reliability

Reliability is the basis of paper pictures. When we are reviewing manuscripts, some magazines will especially remind reviewers that there must be error analysis in experimental analysis, which is also part of reliability. What is the model often used in our previous tweet "Scientific Research Papers"? In the aspect of engineering science innovation, the errors caused by improper data processing are discussed in detail.

For the reliability of the picture, we need to analyze the error of the displayed data, clearly indicate the acquisition conditions of the data, and explain the influencing factors of reliability.

5 heavy feeling

The last basic requirement of a picture is a sense of heaviness, which is also where we are prone to make mistakes. Its main performance is that a painting has only a simple line or shows several points. This feels a bit of a waste of space and makes the whole paper look thin.

So, how can we make the picture feel heavy? First of all, we need to clearly show the law of data in one picture, or integrate several pictures into one picture. For example, a straight line at three points also has error lines, and other relationships can be added. Secondly, we need to analyze the data systematically. Among them, straight lines, curves and histograms can be combined to realize all-round display. Finally, we need to explain the pictures in a rich and detailed way. This needs to explain the source, basic identification, acquisition conditions and laws behind the data in the picture, so that reviewers and readers can get twice the result with half the effort.