R Add Frequency Distribution "Ticks" to ggplot

Question

I know this may not be the best example, but I would like to add the distribution of the x-variable (lstat) above the x-axis as shown in the example plot. I provide data for an MWE and the code for a simple line graph.

However, so far I have no clues on how to achieve this. Are there any hints on this?

library(ggplot2)
library(mlbench)

data(BostonHousing)

ggplot(data = BostonHousing) +
  geom_line(aes(x = lstat, y = medv))

Example Plot for the Frequency ticks above the x-axis:

score 2 · Accepted Answer · answered Sep 03 '21 at 10:39

2

You can also use the geom_segment function if you want to specify the height of the tick.

library(tidyverse)
library(mlbench)

data(BostonHousing)

ggplot(data = BostonHousing) +
  geom_line(aes(x = lstat, y = medv)) +
  geom_segment(aes(x = lstat, xend = lstat, yend = 3, y = 0))

answered Sep 03 '21 at 10:39

Hansel Palencia

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9
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That's a really nice way of doing it - great answer! – jared_mamrot Sep 03 '21 at 10:45

score 1 · Answer 2 · answered Sep 03 '21 at 10:37

1

I believe what you're looking for is called a 'rug plot' and you can implement it using ggplot's geom_rug() function, e.g.

library(tidyverse)
library(mlbench)

data(BostonHousing)

ggplot(data = BostonHousing) +
  geom_line(aes(x = lstat, y = medv)) +
  geom_rug(aes(x = lstat))

^{Created on 2021-09-03 by the reprex package (v2.0.1)}

answered Sep 03 '21 at 10:37

jared_mamrot

22,354
4
21
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1

I'll also give you a +1 because your answer is definitely correct! – Hansel Palencia Sep 03 '21 at 11:20

R Add Frequency Distribution "Ticks" to ggplot

2 Answers2