Learn in the textbookBasic Charts and Visualizing Distributions
DefinitionA scatter plot (散布図) puts the values of two items on the vertical and horizontal axes and plots each record as a dot to show the correlation between the two items.
ExplanationA tendency for one value to be larger as the other grows is a positive correlation, a tendency for it to be smaller is a negative correlation, and the closer the dots cluster around a straight line, the stronger the correlation. A correlation seen in a scatter plot does not mean that one item causes the other. Replacing the dots with circles whose size shows a third quantity gives a bubble chart.
AnalogyPlot each classmate's study time and test score as one dot, and the direction of the band of dots reveals how the two are related.
Memory hookTo scatter is to sow seeds. How the sown dots spread out tells you how strongly the two items are related.