I am currently writing a literature review, and I'd like to be able to plot the evolution of some of the algorithms by plotting papers I've read, and their connections via citation as a horizontal tree, and have the x-axis correspond to publication date.
Here is an example of what I am looking for.
Questions
- What is this type of graph called?
- Are there existing tools to produce this type of graph?
Ideally, I'd like to achieve this in R, or using D3.js, but I am flexible.
Best Answer
So, as the question is perfectly on-topic here, as it deals with "Data Visualization", I would reproduce the comment as an answer, so that future viewers can be benefitted.
What is this type of graph called?
This graph is called as a "Tree diagram" and sometimes also called a dendrogram
Are there existing tools to produce this type of graph?
Yes, the tree diagram can be drawn in all the major data science tools.
Here is a link to the tutorial for plotting the tree diagram in D3.js
In Python, the pydot package can be used. Here is a link to a detailed tutorial.
Here is another tutorial in R, which gives a step-by-step guide on various types of tree diagrams.
I would recommend going with D3 for the dendrograms, owing to better aesthetics, ease of code and flexibility.