Author: Brendan Barry

  • Circle Charts ca. 1937

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    Brendan Barry
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    Another image from my 1930s algebra book is on pie charts, or what was then called circle charts. And while the utility of such a chart form has not changed, especially in these examples, the circle chart of the 1930s had one particular good use for students. Constructing it. Today a student plugs in numbers…

  • How to Use Good Data Visualisation in Your Private Life

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    Brendan Barry
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    Often we think of graphs, charts, and other forms of data visualisation as a means to exploring the economic growth of so and so, or visualising traffic patterns, of explaining the complexities of science, or the reporting of yesterday’s news. But, we can all use data visualisation in our own lives to help make better…

  • Comparing the (Display of) Results in Colorado

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    Brendan Barry
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    Mitt Romney lost badly last night. No way around that. But as I watched the results come in through various sources, I noticed two interesting design decisions that made me think; one from the Guardian (the British perspective), and the other from the New York Times. Using only Colorado as an example, here is the…

  • Replacing the Bay Bridge for the Long Term

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    Brendan Barry
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    Bridges are vital parts of infrastructure networks connecting two separate pieces of territory, but often they can be choke points. Damage to a bridge can result to isolation at worst and at best long, circuitous reroutes that add significant time to travel. In the San Francisco area authorities are building a new bridge to replace…

  • A Win for New Jersey

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    Brendan Barry
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    So apparently there was a game last night? I didn’t get the chance to watch it, I was busy updating this blog here. The changes ought to make it easier to be more social, since that’s the thing these days. But, so about that game, apparently New Jersey won. Congratulations to the New Jersey Giants of…

  • Picture Graphs ca. 1937

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    Brendan Barry
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    Among my legions of books are a few from my grandfather’s days when he was a student. After going through some photos yesterday, I realised that I had taken photos of his elementary school algebra text book. Among the first chapters was an entire section on graphing and chart types. I hope to go through…

  • Punxsutawney Phil’s Day in the Sun

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    Brendan Barry
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    Groundhog Day. It’s Punxsutawney Phil’s day in the sun. Or not. Depends upon the year. Anyway, the Philadelphia Inquirer did a small piece about the history of this famous little groundhog from remote northwestern Pennsylvania. Credit for the piece goes to Cynthia Greer.

  • Housing Prices Fall Some More

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    Brendan Barry
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    Houses are meant to be lived in. Which is good to know if you’re a real estate investor because the housing market in the US is still not so good. According to an article in the New York Times, we’re back to 2003 levels (on average of course) for single-family homes. Accompanying the article is…

  • Cities Split Apart

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    Brendan Barry
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    I like maps. Ever since I was kid. This post is less of an interesting graphic, chart, or what have you, but instead to point you to an interesting opinion piece in the New York Times. Frank Jacobs of Strange Maps wrote the piece, which is about cities split apart by political boundaries.

  • Florida Primary

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    Brendan Barry
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    The Republican primaries…they’re still going on…on the long inevitable road to Romney’s coronation. Next up is Florida, always an interesting state to watch. There are a lot of people there with a whole host of interesting demographic slices. Perhaps one of the most interesting ones, at least to the media, is the Hispanic vote. Other…