Sankey charts are visual representations of data flow in the form of a flow diagram. They are used in fields such as economics, social sciences, and engineering to illustrate the movement of information or resources between different entities or actors.
Sankey charts are made of two types of shapes: the node (a symbol representing a unit of information) and the artery (a line connecting two nodes). These shapes are designed to convey information visually, with nodes highlighting the source or destination of the data flow, and arteries representing the direction of the flow.
To create a sankey chart, you start by identifying the nodes and defining their data flow. This process can be tedious, but there are several approaches you can take. For instance, you can start by creating a list of all the actors and information sources you want to represent, and then use a data mapping algorithm to assign each actor or information source with a unique node identifier. Once you have a list of nodes, you can begin drawing the arteries connecting them, with one of the nodes on each artery representing the source and the other node on the other end representing the destination.
Once you have drawn all the arteries and nodes, it’s time to color-code the chart to make it easier to interpret. You can color-code the nodes based on different factors such as the magnitude of impact or relationship to other actors. This helps to visualise the importance of each actor and the influence of each data flow.
Sankey charts are widely applicable in research and analysis, in industries and policy-making fields, especially when it comes to visualizing resource flows and information networks. They are also a great tool for understanding complex system dynamics, helping professionals and businesses to identify and prioritize the actors and flow of information.
Sankey charts are not dependent on specific software for creating them, they have been available in Excel and Google Sheets since the mid-21st century. The development of software with a more advanced user interface, like Adobe Illustrator or Freehand, are improving the ease of creation and manipulation of sankey charts.
Sankey charts are a powerful tool for analyzing and visualizing data flow, allowing stakeholders to easily understand the relationships between actors and the directions and volumes of data flows. With their dynamic nature and visual appeal, they make data analysis more accessible and effective. The next time you start working on projects that require data analysis, consider using sankey charts.

In summary, sankey charts can be an accurate, easy and powerful tool for those who want to visualize a data flow network, they can help explain complex concepts in an simple-to-understand manner, provide a useful overview of the relationships between entities in a flow of information, and can be a great visual aid in business and social studies.

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