Examining How We Measure Our Lives
Commentary, critiques, and observations on information design and data visualisation
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Demanding the Impossible
Read on…: Demanding the ImpossibleThe key problem in the Brexit deal remains what to do with the Irish border. In essence, the UK faces the same trilemma it has since the beginning. It wants three things it cannot have at the same time: exiting the EU single market and customs union, so it can create a free and independent trade policy; no hard border…
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Another Week, Another Brexit Vote
Read on…: Another Week, Another Brexit VoteYet again, we are poised to watch the British House of Commons this week as it votes on several key pieces of Brexit-related legislation. In short, MPs are set to vote on Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal. Again. Basically the same one that MPs rejected by a historic margin last month. The question is will they vote against it…
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Basic Statistics
Read on…: Basic StatisticsHappy Friday, everybody. We made it to the end of the week. And so now we have xkcd going all back to school and teaching us all simple statistics. For those unfamiliar with statistics, that’s not at all how it works. Credit for the piece goes to Randall Munroe.
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The Long and Winding Road
Read on…: The Long and Winding RoadThis Washington Post piece caught my eye earlier this week. It takes a look back at all the departures from the Trump administration, which has been beset by one of the highest turnover rates of all time. What I like about the piece is how it classifies personnel by whether or not they require Senate confirmation. For example, Ryan Zinke…
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The Uneven Rebound of Manufacturing
Read on…: The Uneven Rebound of ManufacturingAdmittedly, I only read today’s piece because of the photograph on the Washington Post’s homepage. It featured a giant banner saying Lordstown (Ohio) was the home of the (Chevy) Cruze. Every single time I drove between Philadelphia and Chicago I would see that sign. It was also near the halfway point, so whichever way I was headed I only had…
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Is Bryce Harper Another Ryan Howard?
Read on…: Is Bryce Harper Another Ryan Howard?No. Definitely not. But, the position of this article by FiveThirtyEight is that the Phillies, the Philadelphia baseball team that just made the largest guaranteed contract in North American sports, may have purchased the rights to somebody who is a few years past his prime. The author tracked the performance of similar baseball players over history and found that they…
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The Periodic Table
Read on…: The Periodic TableLast week the Economist published a fascinating read that uses one of the fundamental information design pieces there is. The piece talks about the history of organising within the field of chemistry and the most well-known…elements in it: the elements. I am, of course, referring to the Periodic Table. The piece starts actually in revolutionary France, a history I did…
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What About the Magic JPEG
Read on…: What About the Magic JPEGWe made it to the end of the week, everybody. And that’s saying something. Part of my jobs over the last several years has been to work with context experts and help them tell their stories. Sometimes I have to do it through charts and graphics. When that happens, I often need data files to help me create the final…