Draft:Sparge plot

A sparge plot is a diagram depicting the unfettered positions of raw numerical data for several comparable univariate distributions in the context of non-parametric summary statistic scaffolding (e.g. quartiles) that indicate the quantitative dispersion and skew of the underlying points. This is technically accomplished using a combination of a) vertical stacking of the distributions of b) orthogonally jittered and c) translucent [overlapping] points while also d) subtly superimposing boxplots around the central assemblage of these points.



Sparge plots are similar to sina plots or raincloud plots in that they are largely empowered by the datapoints themselves. However, in contrast to sina and raincloud plots, which typically emphasize a simplification of data distribution using kernel density, sparge plots use a boxplot overlay to quantitatively demarcate such dispersion.

An easy way to create a sparge plot is by using the 'plot.sparge' function in the 'caroline' R-package:


 * The caroline library of the R programming language.