I extend the literature on norms of assertion to the ubiquitous use of graphs in scientific papers and presentations, which I term “graphical testimony.” On my account, the testimonial presentation of a graph involves commitment to both (a) the in‐context reliability of the graph's framing devices and (b) the perspective‐relative accuracy of the graph's content. Despite apparent disagreements between my account and traditional accounts of assertion, the two are compatible and I argue that we should expect a similar pattern of commitments in a set of cases that extends beyond the graphical one. I end by demonstrating that the account resolves apparent tensions between the demands of honesty and the common scientific practice of presenting idealized or simplified graphs: these “distortions” can be honest so long as there's the right kind of alignment between the distortion and the background beliefs and values of the audience.

中文翻译：

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你如何断言一个图？迈向科学证词中描述的描述


我将关于断言规范的文献扩展到科学论文和演示文稿中无处不在的图表使用，我称之为“图形证词”。就我而言，图表的推荐表示涉及对 （a） 图表框架装置的上下文可靠性和 （b） 图表内容的视角相对准确性的承诺。尽管我的叙述与传统的断言叙述之间存在明显的分歧，但两者是兼容的，我认为我们应该期待在一系列超出图形情况的情况下出现类似的承诺模式。最后，我证明了这个叙述解决了诚实的要求与呈现理想化或简化图表的常见科学实践之间的明显紧张关系：这些 “扭曲 ”可以是诚实的，只要这些扭曲与观众的背景信仰和价值观之间存在正确的一致性。