Notice that no algebra-style variables were used. I performed the adjustment simply by dragging horizontally on the value ("scrubbing" the number). I couldn't get it exactly right because it wouldn't divide evenly, so I added a little extra to the top margin to make everything work out. (As I typed, the tool automatically calculated the total, ignoring the words.) I saw my guess was too large (the total was more than 768), so I adjusted the bar height until the total was about right. What happened here? I typed out the expression for the total height, making a guess at the bar height. Here's a different way of finding the answer: A conventional approach to this problem is to write out an equation:Īnd then perform algebraic manipulation to invert the equation and solve for x. I had chosen heights for the top margin, bottom margin, and gap between the bars, and I needed to know the height of the bars themselves. When mocking up the bar charts in Photoshop, I had to calculate how tall to make the bars so they would fill the available space. Math soulver series#I recently designed a series of data graphics for a book. I call this tool a "scrubbing calculator", because you solve problems by interactively scrubbing over numbers until you're happy with the results.īackground: This work assumes a Soulver-like environment for interactive arithmetic, and picks up where Soulver leaves off. This page presents an idea for exploring practical algebraic problems without using symbolic variables. Scrubbing Calculator Bret Victor / May 31, 2011
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