By using multivariate projection methods, however, we are able to transform the numbers into pictures.
The first plot is analogous to a map of Europe showing how the countries relate to each other based on their food consumption profiles. Countries with similar profiles lie close to each other in the map while countries with different profiles lie far apart. For example, the Scandinavian countries cluster together in the top right quadrant while the Mediterranean countries form a cluster to the left of the plot.
The co-ordinates of the map are the first two principal components calculated from all of the data. We call this map a score plot. Later in this tutorial we will see how this plot is created.