[IxDA Discuss] IxD Ethics: Business vs. User

[Steve Baty]

On 14/11/2007, Mark Schraad <mschraad at mac.com> wrote:
>
> These are relative and fuzzy scale indicators. They may not be linear, but
> how do we know that they do not accurately reflect the situation.. The
> second half of a tank of gas in my car always goes faster than the first...
>

Mark, if my limited electrical engineering skills serve me, the rate of
discharge of a lithium ion battery is not linear but follows something like
a two-hump curve where the battery loses charge faster at very high & very
low charge levels, and at a slower rate through the mid-range, with the
slowest rate of loss at around 30% charge.

Car fuel tanks are less complicated, but they're usually not evenly-shaped,
so the 'level' of fuel is not necessarily a good indicator of the actual
amount of fuel residing in the tank.

However, the basic issue raised by Christopher - that some businesses will
consciously distort the graphical representation of a numeric value to
create a false impression is true and in evidence in a broad range of areas.


Regards
Steve

----------------------------------------------
Steve 'Doc' Baty B.Sc (Maths), M.EC, MBA
Director, User Experience Strategy
Red Square
P: +612 8289 4930
M: +61 417 061 292

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