Examining How We Measure Our Lives
Commentary, critiques, and observations on information design and data visualisation
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Black and White Maps
Read on…: Black and White MapsRarely do I have criticism for infographics or pieces published by the New York Times, and admittedly this time I no longer have the original. However, in May, the Times published a map that was printed in black and white in their paper. I could not make heads or tails of what the map was […]
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Dambusters
Read on…: DambustersMore formally known as Operation Chastise, the Dambusters Raid occurred just over 70 years ago on 16 May 1943. That night, 19 RAF Lancaster bombers flew over the English Channel with the objective of busting open three dams to flood and cripple the electricity- and water-supplies to the all-important German Ruhr industrial valley. Canada’s National […]
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Digging up a Dornier
Read on…: Digging up a DornierDornier was a German aircraft manufacturer active during World War II. One of their more interesting designs was the Do-17 bomber, nicknamed the Pencil Bomber because of its unusually thin fuselage. All surviving examples of the aircraft were thought destroyed until one was found on the floor of the English Channel. Yesterday the Royal Air […]
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Political Pangea
Read on…: Political PangeaTheoretical/hypothetical maps can be a lot of fun, as well as informative. Today’s post exemplifies both. Pangea was one of those super-continents where all the Earth’s landmass was mashed together into one giant continent. It broke up a few hundred million years ago into the geography with which we are roughly familiar. But I have […]
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Testing the Atom Bomb
Read on…: Testing the Atom BombThe Washington Post looked at the testing of the first atomic bomb at White Sands. Nuclear weapons are a topic on which I have done some work in the past. But this piece looks more at the historic test called Trinity. Credit for the piece goes to Alberto Cuadra and Laris Karklis.
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Dunkin Donuts vs. Starbucks
Read on…: Dunkin Donuts vs. StarbucksI’m not a coffee guy. I drink tea. At most I have one or two espresso drinks per year. But up in Boston, they have been looking this week at coffee preferences. The question is which is your coffee spot? Dunkin Donuts (from Massachusetts) or Starbucks (from Washington)? Northeast or Pacific Northwest? In a piece […]
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Piracy on the Seas
Read on…: Piracy on the SeasToday’s post looks at an interactive graphic from the Los Angeles Times. The subject matter is piracy and the piece has three distinct views, the second of which is displayed here. Generally speaking, the package is put together fairly well. My biggest concern is with the first graphic. It uses circles to represent the number […]