Designing linked micromap plots for states with many counties.

This paper describes the design of linked micromap plots for showing county estimates on a state by state basis. The linked micromap template was specifically developed to represent spatially indexed statistical summaries. Each plot shows regional names, spatial patterns and statistical patterns while linking them all together. Thus the design is useful for communicating summaries from a host of health and environmental studies. The specific design challenge in this paper is to create one-page plots for the states with 60 to 120 counties. While the county names and micromaps take up substantial space, the three examples demonstrate that there is sufficient space to represent two variables. The basic design has the potential for showing more. Consequently the new designs are suitable for presenting sophisticated summaries. Copyright 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.