answer:I know Information is Beautiful is a great free site with examples of the kinds of things you’re talking about. They have a book too I believe, but as you point out, it’s not a tutorial. To a certain extent, copying examples is a good place to start. It sounds more like he should read basic graphic design books and then apply it to the sciences using those types of examples as templates. Copying talented people is a good way to learn how to do things. Also, it’s going to take a lot of time and energy to get good enough to produce that level of quality, just as it would take a lot of time and energy for a graphic artist to learn how to do doctoral level scientific research.