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Abstract
Early scientists and engineers used pictures to calculate and convey technical information. Since before 1800, they referred to this practice as the “graphic method.” In 1878, French polymath Étienne-Jules Marey published a 652-page book titled La méthode graphique dans les sciences expérimentales. La Méthode Graphique was the first work of its kind. In the introduction of the book, translated for this column, Marey helps us understand how visualization took root as a crucial tool documenting the empirical world.
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Notes on contributors
RJ Andrews
RJ Andrews is an American data storyteller who helps organizations solve high-stakes problems with visual metaphors and information graphics. He is the author of Info We Trust, How to Inspire the World with Data and editor of the Information Graphic Visionaries book series.
Georges Hattab
Dr. Georges Hattab is a French scientist interested in high-dimensional data from the study of living organisms. He is the Visualization Group leader at the Center for Artificial Intelligence in Public Health Research at the Robert Koch Institute.
Étienne-Jules Marey
Étienne-Jules Marey (1830–1904) was a French scientist, physiologist, and chronophotographer. His work was significant in the development of cardiology, physical instrumentation, aviation, cinematography, and the science of laboratory photography.