Struggling to draw a graph? Having trouble plotting your data? These tips and tricks will help biology and chemistry students to get that data plotted. If you find it tough to draw a graph then you may find the following course useful: http://mathsbiosciences.usefedora.com/courses/basic-chemistry

1. How to draw a graph
http://maths4biosciences.com

2. Key points to drawing a graph
• Make the best use of the graph paper
• Use a sharp pencil
• Plot your point clearly and add the line
• Join the points, or use a line of best fit
• Clearly label the axes - don’t forget any units
• Give the graph a title

3. 100 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
10
0
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2
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4
5
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7
8
9

4. 100 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
10
0
1
2
3
4
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8
9

5. 100 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
10
0
1
2
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8
9
Don’t forget to give the graph a title
x axis - label it (and don’t forget the units)
yaxis-labelit(anddon’tforgettheunits)

6. Key points to drawing a graph
• Make the best use of the graph paper
• Use a sharp pencil
• Plot your point clearly and add the line
• Join the points, or use a line of best fit
• Clearly label the axes - don’t forget any units
• Give the graph a title

7. Worked example
You have the data shown in the table
How would you plot it on a graph?
Concentration
(µg/ml)
Absorbance
(595 nm)
0 0
1 0.054
2 0.130
4 0.225
8 0.410
16 0.844

8. Concentration
(µg/ml)
Absorbance
(595 nm)
0 0
1 0.054
2 0.130
4 0.225
8 0.410
16 0.844

9. Concentration
(µg/ml)
Absorbance
(595 nm)
0 0
1 0.054
2 0.130
4 0.225
8 0.410
16 0.844

10. Concentration
(µg/ml)
Absorbance
(595 nm)
0 0
1 0.054
2 0.130
4 0.225
8 0.410
16 0.844

11. Concentration
(µg/ml)
Absorbance
(595 nm)
0 0
1 0.054
2 0.130
4 0.225
8 0.410
16 0.844

12. Concentration
(µg/ml)
Absorbance
(595 nm)
0 0
1 0.054
2 0.130
4 0.225
8 0.410
16 0.844

13. Concentration
(µg/ml)
Absorbance
(595 nm)
0 0
1 0.054
2 0.130
4 0.225
8 0.410
16 0.844

14. Concentration
(µg/ml)
Absorbance
(595 nm)
0 0
1 0.054
2 0.130
4 0.225
8 0.410
16 0.844

15. Concentration
(µg/ml)
Absorbance
(595 nm)
0 0
1 0.054
2 0.130
4 0.225
8 0.410
16 0.844

16. Concentration
(µg/ml)
Absorbance
(595 nm)
0 0
1 0.054
2 0.130
4 0.225
8 0.410
16 0.844
Unknown
Absorbance
(595 nm)
Conc.
(µg/ml)
1 0.500

17. Concentration
(µg/ml)
Absorbance
(595 nm)
0 0
1 0.054
2 0.130
4 0.225
8 0.410
16 0.844
Unknown
Absorbance
(595 nm)
Conc.
(µg/ml)
1 0.500

18. Concentration
(µg/ml)
Absorbance
(595 nm)
0 0
1 0.054
2 0.130
4 0.225
8 0.410
16 0.844
Unknown
Absorbance
(595 nm)
Conc.
(µg/ml)
1 0.500 9.23

19. Amount
(µgl)
Absorbance
(595 nm)
0 0
3 0.066
6 0.130
12 0.255
24 0.481
48 0.966
Unknown
Absorbance
(595 nm)
Amount
(µg)
1 0.187
2 0.406
3 0.703
4 1.189

20. Concentration
(µgl)
Absorbance
(595 nm)
0 0
3 0.066
6 0.130
12 0.255
24 0.481
48 0.966
Unknown
Absorbance
(595 nm)
Amount
(µg)
1 0.187 9.0
2 0.406 19.6
3 0.703 33.9
4 1.189 ???

22. Summary
• Make the best use of the graph paper
• Use a sharp pencil
• Plot your point clearly and add the line
• Join the points, or use a line of best fit
• Clearly label the axes - don’t forget any units
• Give the graph a title
• Use different point styles if showing more than one data set

23. For more information and a free course please visit:
http://maths4biosciences.com
Maths course for biology and chemistry students:
http://mathsbiosciences.usefedora.com
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