Interesting to read how the Monstrous Costs graph was easily recognized and remembered. Makes me think back to the example of facial characteristics being used to quantify data. I also wonder if embellishing graphs with other forms of sensory ornament would help readers retain info or simply remember the chart.
Wow, the aspect ratio of the graph with the seemingly converging lines is crazy. Something that could easily be negated with interactivity or a quick animation. Amazing how many pitfalls there are in properly representing the data visually. The ink ration is definitely something I hadn't considered before, even more so when relating to bubble graphs. Using the radius as opposed to the area is tricky and a mistake I easily could have seen myself making.
I actually understand the inclination to use 3D perspective or weird donut graphs. The allure of drawing a reader in usually with one of the few graphic elements in an article or paper makes sense. This is one of the few opportunities an author will have to grab the reader's attention outside of a block of text. I'm not arguing for it, but I understand where the heart is.
It seems as though a lot of the pitfalls here, especially relating to zero-points are due to the static nature of graphs. Even the difficulty in comparing the areas of circles seems like a simple fix with interactivity or a looping animated graphic to cycle through relevant comparisons.