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A Venn diagram is a mathematical illustration that shows all of the possible mathematical or logical relationships between sets. A Euler diagram resembles a Venn diagram, but does not neccessarily show all possible intersections of the sets. A Euler diagram is often more useful for showing real world data, because not all sets partially overlap with all other sets.
I used the 3 Circle Venn Diagram Applet to make a diagram of food preferences in my family. I have one child who won’t eat much in the way of meat or vegetables, and another who dislikes carbs. The is a classic Venn diagram, which explains why I don’t cook as often as I used to.
This graphic is labeled as a Venn diagram, but it is actually a Euler diagram, because at no point does true happiness intersect with wearing pants. At least for the person who made the diagram.
More diagram fun, after the jump.
If the circles don’t intersect, it’s not a Venn diagram. Which can be a very sad thing if you’re a circle. This design was found at Threadless T-Shirts. However, Euler diagrams may overlap or not. But Euler is not what the blue circle had in mind.
I came across this very useful image last week that started my quest to learn the difference between a Venn diagram and a Euler diagram. It explains the geographic terminology used in that area of the eastern Atlantic that confuses Americans. The author labeled the item as The Great British Venn Diagram, then explaned that it was actually a Euler diagram. No doubt people are more familiar with Venn. But no matter how geographically accurate the place names are, Irish commenters predictably objected to being included in anything labeled with the word “British”. Another such diagram that includes more islands can be found here.
These sweet and sour doodles are true Venn diagrams. They were produced by Jessica Hagy of Indexed, a blog full of wonderful diagrams and graphs jotted on index cards.
Rob Harvilla used Venn and other diagrams to deconstruct the song “This Is Why I’m Hot” by Mims at The Villlage Voice. The diagrams clearly show that the lyrics make no sense at all. Nevertheless, the song was number one at the time this was written.
Speaking of music, here’s a t-shirt for music snobs featuring a two-set Venn diagram. From the product page:
Nothing is any good if other people like it. We’ve just proven it mathematically. I have a theory that the only thing cartoonists bothered learning in math class was Venn Diagrams.
Randall Munroe at xkcd has the geekiest love notes ever. This classic Venn diagram is so sweet and simple, until he started to fill in the zones.
Venn diagrams and Euler diagrams are just two more of the many handy learning devices that are used for strange or comedic purposes. See also Periodic Tableware, More Periodic Tableware, and Fun with Flow Charts.
Comments (22)
Comment
i love me some venn diagram humor. i took logic in college for my math credit, so i became quite familiar with the ways of the venn…
posted by Yerg on 2-12-2008 at 7:07 am
Just to pick a nit:
Euler is pronounced “oiler”. Therefore the proper usuage is AN Euler diagram.
posted by Jeff on 2-12-2008 at 9:33 pm
OOOPS
usage
:)
posted by Jeff on 2-12-2008 at 9:46 pm
Really? It’s true, I DO learn something new every day at mental_floss! Thanks, Jeff.
posted by Miss Cellania on 2-12-2008 at 9:51 pm
I think this is about the funniest Venn diagram joke ever. I miss the Sluggy Sunday filler strip.
Well… I can’t post a link.
So, it’s at sluggy.com, and the date value is date=050820
That’s YYMMDD, so it was a while ago. Definitely needs to be part of this collection. :)
posted by Mark on 2-12-2008 at 11:11 pm
this is freakin hilarious! I laughed hard. And I’m all by myself.
posted by red on 2-12-2008 at 11:16 pm
Thanks for making the Venn diagam no longer boring but funny and interesting.
posted by Daniel Ted Feliciano on 2-13-2008 at 12:10 am
It’s really all about Jamphat’s rap diagrams. Do a search (because no links allowed.)
posted by Nicholas S on 2-13-2008 at 12:38 am
oddly enough, I was reading the wiki page on euler a bit earlier tonight, as a server I’m now tasked with administering is named after him:
also, you missed the best euler diagram ever:
hxxp://bp2.blogger.com/_idzsaV6c7aM/R0d0f29yTZI/AAAAAAAAAwk/nUN4_CzWLfI/s1600/wutang.png
posted by wes on 2-13-2008 at 12:42 am
Lol those are really great, especially the last one and the cartoon near the top.
posted by Television Now on 2-13-2008 at 12:49 am
Your diagram of the British Isles is wrong. Where are channel islands?
Regards
posted by Peter Lucas on 2-13-2008 at 1:43 am
nice… i remember i used to love Venn diagram problems in school - I was sure I will get the answer by just drawing it and filling in the zones.
posted by Sandeep on 2-13-2008 at 2:28 am
This is cool. Now, I think i will name my first born Venn. That way i can tell her that she is the real connection between me and her mom. Thanks for the post.
posted by Auto Parts for Brains on 2-13-2008 at 2:51 am
Hi,
I was just thinking, in the figure for, Venn Diagram for Music Snobs, there is a mistake.
The union of the music I like and you like can’t be labeled as music I USED to love. The region should be, called music we love…
posted by Soham on 2-13-2008 at 5:59 am
Hmmm, methinks Soham missed the point.
posted by Dooch on 2-13-2008 at 7:34 am
the music one is wrong..
how can ‘music i used to like’ be a subset of ‘music i like’ ?
surely the logic is that if you used to like something it means you don’t like it now ?
posted by jack on 2-13-2008 at 9:02 am
this is just too funny …
especially the last one … with vanilla ice cream thrown in there …
hehehe …
posted by subcorpus on 2-14-2008 at 3:13 am
It IS hilarious. subcorpus, I think you’ll find it even funnier to know that Vanilla Ice was a flash in the pan rapper from the 90s.
posted by Shmuel on 2-14-2008 at 12:02 pm
what about a ballantine diagram?
posted by domination on 2-14-2008 at 3:01 pm
The RobotPony comic guy started doing Venn/Euler diagrams last year too (robotpony.ca/2008/02/01/every-tom-dick-and-harry-is-a-webhost/).
posted by Eric J. on 2-14-2008 at 10:18 pm
Very nice…Great use of Venn diagrams. This is a perfect example of how you can use them to display the relationships between pretty much anything. Great post
posted by Venn Diagram Guy on 3-19-2008 at 11:46 am
Excellent postings. Many of these are very funny. I agree, the “Wearing Pants” diagram is the best ever.
posted by Pro-think.com on 3-22-2008 at 5:05 am