A nonlinear axis, or nonuniform axis, is useful in two major scenarios:
- Sometimes a few extreme data points that deviate a lot from the rest of the data can result in misleading charts. These outliers skew a chart towards large values, while the area for representing smaller values becomes compressed. A nonlinear axis can help better represent values that span several orders of magnitude.
- In the fields of finance or science, it is common to come across nonlinear measurements, such as compound interest, growth rate, earthquake strength, sound loudness, and light intensity. By switching to a nonlinear axis, equal percentage changes can be represented as the same linear distance on a scale. This allows a clearer representation ...