Examining How We Measure Our Lives
Commentary, critiques, and observations on information design and data visualisation
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Read on…: Not the Momma
Well, we made it to the weekend once again. Sometimes—often if I’m being honest—I will sit and watch birds hop around on my balcony, chirping to each other for a minute or two before they fly off to destinations unknown. And in the back of my mind I am always thinking, that little guy is […]
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Just a Thought About a Thing That’s Been Nipping at Me
Read on…: Just a Thought About a Thing That’s Been Nipping at MeThe democratisation of design tools ostensibly allows people to create high-quality graphics. But I think we can all admit to ourselves we see a lot of work that…misses its mark. As a general rule, I do not often post work here by untrained designers. My peers and I have the benefit of education and experience […]
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A Matter of Millimetres
Read on…: A Matter of MillimetresWell we have made it to the weekend. And so it is the time to look at the area of men’s genitalia. This week on baseball Twitter the following graphic made the rounds. The graphic itself claims to be from the Times—the original, not the New York version for my American audience—though I have been […]
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Do We Do This Every Year?
Read on…: Do We Do This Every Year?Every year on Groundhog’s Day I feel as if more and more critters crawl up from the Earth to offer their portents of prolonged winter. And every year we look backwards with the fullness of meteorological observations to evaluate the accuracy of these armchair—armburrow?—forecasters. This year, the Philadelphia Inquirer’s required article on the matter included […]
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Aches, Fevers, and Chills, Oh My!
Read on…: Aches, Fevers, and Chills, Oh My!Last week I suffered from the aforetitled and wondered what just might be ailing me. My sore throat woke me up in the middle of the night with intense, sharp pain and reminded me of stories I had read earlier this flu season about “razor blade” sore throat associated with the latest COVID strain, Nimbus. […]
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The Slowing of the Growth
Read on…: The Slowing of the GrowthThis week the US Census Bureau released their population estimates for the most recent year and that includes the rate changes for the US, the Census Bureau defined regions, and the 50 states and Puerto Rico. I spent this morning digging into some of the data and whilst I will try to later to get […]
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Xi-nnie the Pooh Purges the PLA
Read on…: Xi-nnie the Pooh Purges the PLAThis past weekend, Xi Jinping, the leader of China, purged the top leadership of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), the armed forces of the People’s Republic of China. Purges themselves are nothing new as Xi has solidified his iron grip on the country and its political leadership in the Chinese Communist Party. But unlike his […]
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The Philadelphia Beat is Pretty Big
Read on…: The Philadelphia Beat is Pretty BigEarly last week I read an article in the Philadelphia Inquirer about where the city’s police officers live, an important issue given the city’s loose requirement they reside within the city limits. Whilst most do, especially in the far Northeast, the Northwest, and South Philadelphia, a significant number live outside the city. (The city of […]
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Space Is Cool
Read on…: Space Is CoolWell we made it to Friday. One of my longtime goals is to see the aurora borealis, or Northern Lights. My plan for the winter of 2020 was to travel to Norway, maybe visit a friend, and then head north to Tromsø and take in the Polar Night and, fingers crossed, catch the show. Then […]
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The Phoenix Rises from the Charcoal
Read on…: The Phoenix Rises from the CharcoalTo be clear, climate change is real. We know humanity drives the bulk of it via emissions of carbon and other greenhouse gasses, e.g. methane. Electricity generation plays a significant role in the total output, though not all means of generating power are equal. Wind, solar, hydro, and nuclear, for example, produce no carbon emissions. […]