Misunderstanding graphs: The confusion of biological clade diversity diagrams and archaeological frequency seriation diagrams. (October 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Lyman, R. Lee
• Is Part Of: Studies in history and philosophy of science. Volume 77(2019)
• Publication Date: 2019-10
• Subjects: Archaeological frequency seriation -- Clade diversity analysis -- Graph perception -- Spindle diagram; Biology -- Periodicals; Natural history -- Periodicals; Biology -- Philosophy -- Periodicals; Medicine -- History -- Periodicals; Medicine -- Philosophy -- Periodicals; Bioethics -- Periodicals; Biologie -- Histoire -- Périodiques; Biologie -- Philosophie -- Périodiques; Sciences de la santé -- Histoire -- Périodiques; Sciences de la santé -- Philosophie -- Périodiques; Médecine -- Histoire -- Périodiques; Médecine -- Philosophie -- Périodiques; 570.1
• DOI: 10.1016/j.shpsc.2019.101178
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1369-8486

Abstract

Abstract: Graph perception involves the accurate decipherment of (often quantitative) data displayed in visual form. Because graph style may reflect discipline-specific tradition, similar graph styles in distinct disciplines can be subject to misinterpretation. Both archaeologist James A. Ford and paleobiologist Stephen Jay Gould confused spindle diagrams representing archaeological frequency seriation and paleontological clade diversity analysis as displaying the same kinds of data and representing the same processes. Similarities between the two kinds of analysis are, however, limited to the use of the same graph style—spindle diagrams—to illustrate the history of frequencies of things. The kinds of frequencies differ in two ways between the two disciplines; frequencies are of low-level Linnaean taxa within a clade representing a higher taxon in paleobiology, and are frequencies of artifact specimens within each of several types in archaeology. Further, frequencies are absolute in clade diversity and relative in frequency seriation. Clade diversity analysis, as practiced by Gould and colleagues, is a time-series analysis that requires knowing the age of taxa prior to analysis of the shape of the spindle diagram. Frequency seriation in archaeology involves ordering multiple collections of artifacts that share at least some types; ordering is based on similar frequencies and a presumed unimodal frequency distribution, and the order is inferred to be a chronology. Different analytical assumptions and goals result in discipline specific rules of graph decipherment, though each of the two kinds of analyses can be performed in each of the two disciplines. Highlights: Archaeologist James A. Ford and paleobiologist Stephen Jay Gould noted similarities between the graphs of both disciplines. Confusion resulted because both disciplines used spindle diagrams as visual representations of quantitative data. Clade diversity spindles are time series displaying absolute frequencies of low-level taxa within higher taxa. Frequency seriation spindles show percentages of artifacts in individual types and are inferred to rshowthe passage of time. Paleobiologists have seldom constructed frequency seriations and few archaeologists have constructed clade diversity spindles.