ENGLISH FOR COMPUTER SCIENCE
Illustrations (Part I)
The language used to describe graphs and charts is the same whatever discipline you happen to be in; this means that a little basic knowledge can go a long way. First a look at the basic types of data presentation.
Match the diagrams/graphs to their names:
pie chart table
scatter diagram percentage bar chart
simple bar chart multiple line graph simple line graph
Answers names
Fill the numbered gaps(*)______in the following text
with these words.
sectors / axes / dotted / curve / horizontal / columnssolid / vertical / bars / histograms / broken / segments
When describing graphs it is important to define the (1)______. These are the horizontal and vertical lines which give the units of the graph.
(2)______
axis or 'y'-axis
(3)______ axis or 'x'-axis
The line described by a graph is usually called a (4)______,
(even if it doesn't look very curved).
The curve can be drawn using:
A (5)______line ______
A (6)______line ______
A (7)______line ......
When talking about pie charts we refer to shaded or unshaded (8)______or (9)______.
In bar charts or (10)______we refer to the (11)______or (12)______.
Answers graph words 1
Describing movement
Even the most logical graph/chart will need some explanation.
To simply say, "The graph goes up to 25°C then stays the same...." does not sound too interesting but, "Initially the temperature climbed rapidly before stabilising at 25°C..." has a better ring to it.
Nouns or Verbs?
Most descriptions of graphs can take two forms:
The temperature roseby 15°C. (Verb)
There was a15°C rise in temperature. (Noun)
It is therefore important to be able to change words from verbs to nouns and vice versa.
Complete the following tables of verbs and their noun equivalents.
Upward movement
VerbNoun
to ______a rise
to improve(an) ______
to ______an increase
to shoot upwards---
to jumpa ______
to grow(a) ______
to pick up---
to take off---
to ______a climb
--- means that an equivalent does not exist or is not usually used.
Downward movement
VerbNoun
to decreasea decrease
to declinea decline
to fall a fall
to drop a drop
to deteriorate(a) ______
to slip---
to dipa dip
to slumpa slump
Change in direction
VerbNoun
to level out/offa ______
to bottom outa ______
to top out---
to recovera ______
to reach a peak/plateau---
to slip back---
to ______(a) stabilisation
to fall off/backa falling off/back
to ______(a) fluctuation
to regain---
to peaka peak
to tail offa tailing off
No change
to maintain to stay at the same level
to stagnate to remain constant to remain stable
Answers Ups and downs
Now rewrite the following sentences using noun phrases:
1. The voltage decreased.
______
2. The flow improved.
______
3. The water level rose by 10 mm.
______
4. The current fluctuated.
______
5. The output was seen to deteriorate.
______
Answers changesentences
Speed of change
The speed of change can be indicated using either adverbs (with verbs) or adjectives (with nouns).
The temperature rose rapidly.(adverb)
There was a rapid rise in temperature.(adjective)
The following adjectives can be used to denote the speed that a graph rises or falls.
Place these adjectives in descending order, i.e. highest speed first.
abrupt slow sudden gradual sharp immediate
rapid gentle sluggish quick steady instantaneous
1. ______
2. ______
3. ______
4. ______
5. ______
6. ______
7. ______
8. ______
9. ______
10. ______
11. ______
12. ______
Answers fast-slow
Degree of change
The size of change can be described in a similar way.
Place the following adjectives into categories.
heftyminimalconsiderableslight
significant sizeablemeasurablenegligible
substantialnoticeablemarkedmarginal
moderateinsignificantacceptabletolerable
steep (large)(average)(small)
Great Increase / Medium Increase / Tiny Increase / Other ChangeNOTE
All the adjectives, except those in brackets, can be turned into adverbs by the addition of "ly".
Answers big-small
Putting it all together
The following graph provides information about an imaginary experiment in which effects of a mystery substance, A, on the growth rate of a seedling are measured.
Looking back through the previous pages, use the language you have learned to label the following portions of the graph:
days 2-6 day 6 days 6-7 8-10 10-14 and 14-20.
Effects of substance A on the growth rate of a seedling
Now finish this paragraph describing the graph using the language you have chosen.
At the start of the experiment, the growth rate of the seedling was about 0.2mm/day. This steadily increased to 0.5 mm/day in the second day. Between days two and six there was...
Model Answer
Revision
Do you know:
1 The names of the various types of data presentation?
2 The specific vocabulary associated with graphs?
3. The verbs and corresponding nouns associated with graphs?
4. The adjectives and adverbs which can be used with the above?
Now go and look at the documentIllustrations (Part II)
Graphs and Tables Page 1