INTERPRETING VISUALS
Have you ever described a photograph in detail? Give it a try and you'll quickly understand the old saying "One picture is worth a thousand words." Visuals make it easier to understand many types of information quickly. Some of the useful types of images you'll find in Biology: The Web of Life are shown in the chart. The numbers at the right are page numbers from your textbook.
|
Types of Images |
|
| Photographs | pp 2-3 -- A Closer Look at Ants |
| Graphs | p 55 -- Effect of Temperature |
| Diagras | p 38 -- Parts of an Atom |
| Tables | p 36 -- Function of Proteins |
| Symbols | p 32 -- bioSurf symbol |
| Illustrations | p 5 -- Spontaneous Generation |
| Charts | p 51-- pH of Common Substances |
| Timelines | p 123 -- Rate of Mitosis |
Knowing how to interpret different graphic forms can help you grasp the key elements of a reading. Learning to correctly "read" visuals can also help you make informed decisions about current events, processes, and products.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR
- Information
All graphic forms convey specific information. In textbooks, this transfer of information often depends on both text and visuals.
For example, the photograph of the Agalchnis
tree frogs that opens Section 5.3 on page 114 shows readers what
the organism looks like as it develops.
The photograph is supplemented with text, in the form of a long caption. Together, the photograph and text convey the information that in most eukaryotic species, offspring are produced by the union of two specialized cells that contain the genetic instructions for creating a new organism.The photograph enriches our understanding by showing some familiar features that are already visible as the organism is developing. The text conveys specific information by telling about the photograph.
- Color
Visuals also use color to convey information. In a photograph, color can show exactly what a living thing looks like. In a diagram, color can bring out details.
For example, Figure 5.5 uses color to distinguish different chromosomes. Notice that the same colors are used again in Figure 5.7 on pages 110111.
- Shapes
Shapes are also an important aspect of visuals. The shape of a specific object or illustration gives readers valuable information about its function.
The diagram shown on Figure 5.4 on page 107, for instance, is round rather than square, rectangular, or triangular. The round shape indicates that the process is a cycle. A differently-shaped visual would not have conveyed this information as effectively.
- Scale
Scale is proportion in size. Visuals convey the scale of people, places, things, and living creatures with immediacy and impact. For example, a text can say, "A newborn elephant stands 3 feet tall and weighs about 200 pounds. A full-grown elephant can be anywhere from 6-to-12 feet high with a weight of 5,000-14,000 pounds." Readers often find it difficult to form a mental image of such a difference in size from numbers alone. A visual, however, would illustrate the point with greater impact because it would help readers see what each animal looks like in relation to the other.
- Focus
Every visual has a focus, or center of interest. The focus is the most important aspect of the visual because it usually conveys the key information. As a result, the focus is often located in the middle of the picture and all elements in the visual are arranged to make readers zero in on that point.
- In a diagram, the focus can lend your eyes to move in a specific
direction. Arrows often are used to help you
In a digram, the focus can lend your eyes to move ina specific direction. Arrows often are used to help you follow the steps of a process.
TRY IT
1. How does Figure 4.6 on page 86 indicate scale?
2. Compare Figure 4.8 on page 88 and Figure 4.9 on page 89. Which shows a cycle? How can you tell?
Click here to check your answers to TRY IT!
To practice what you've just learned, go to Worksheet 1.2
To learn about another reading strategy, go to Reading Strategy 1.1.
Reading Strategy 1.1
| Worksheet 1.1
Reading Strategy 1.2 | Worksheet 1.2
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