Examining How We Measure Our Lives
Commentary, critiques, and observations on information design and data visualisation
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Read on…: New Horizons
So this is generally a more serious post than usual for a Friday. Because, it is about New Horizons, the probe we launched almost a decade ago to explore Pluto, which at that point was still technically a planet. Anyway, the Washington Post has a nice illustration detailing the various sensors and orbits and trajectories. […]
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The Curviest Tracks on the Northeast Corridor
Read on…: The Curviest Tracks on the Northeast CorridorIf you remember a little while back, Amtrak No. 188 derailed in North Philadelphia at Frankford Junction. I covered it here and here. Well, the New York Times has analysed the Northeast Corridor to identify the curviest segments of track, excluding entrances and exits from stations. Perhaps as no surprise, Frankford Junction is right among […]
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Failing to Whack the Mole
Read on…: Failing to Whack the MoleThe story and data behind today’s graphic are worth telling. But, the execution leaves me feeling a bit empty. The piece kicks off a new series called Data Points from National Geographic. But, here in this piece we are looking for clear communication of data. So what do we get? Circles. Circles within circles within […]
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Aquifers Around the World
Read on…: Aquifers Around the WorldIt has rained quite a bit in the south the last couple of days, thanks to tropical weather systems. But, as some new data from NASA shows us, the world is running out of water. That is largely because we drain large underground water systems called aquifers faster than the natural environment replenishes them. The […]
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Donald Trump is Running for President
Read on…: Donald Trump is Running for PresidentThis week saw a few new people officially jump into the 2016 election: Jeb Bush and Donald Trump. Next week I want to at least look at some design-related elements to the forthcoming primaries. But, today is Friday. So let’s get to the important stuff first: Donald Trump’s hair. Thankfully, Time has that covered. (Get […]
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Rotting Wooden Beams
Read on…: Rotting Wooden BeamsEarlier this week a balcony collapse in Berkeley, California killed six Irish students. The building had only been finished in 2007 and was barely ten years old. While the investigation is ongoing, the Los Angeles Times reported on what might have been the cause: dry rot. Credit for the piece goes to Rong Gong-Lin II.
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I Hate the World
Read on…: I Hate the WorldAdobe has introduced new charting tools. Great. They started with “scale by area”. Fuck you, world*. Fuck you. *I fully understand that Adobe is only giving the market what it wants. But the market/people/the world is terrible.
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What if the World Were of States with Equal Populations?
Read on…: What if the World Were of States with Equal Populations?Well, thanks to a reddit editor frayuk, via a nice post on Vox, we now can look at what that world would look like. It’s a bit difficult to see some of the details, but click through to the Vox piece to see just those. Credit for the piece goes to frayuk.