Today’s Plan:
- Intro to Data and Info Viz
- Fun with Maps
- Homework
Introduction to Information and Data Visualization
Today I want to take a break from technology and explore some of the rhetorical dimensions of information and data visualization–everything from making a graph to developing a creative or provocative visualization. You do not to be an expert in computer animation to make something visually engaging, impactful, affective, or persuasive.
So far we have explored simple “rules” (or expectations) for designing print documents. Layout, typography, color, etc. Looking through your menu designs, I am impressed by how quickly many of you have grasped these rules. These rules will obviously play into developing visualizations–but there’s a whole other set of expectations that surround the effective, and ethical presentation of data and research.
This week I want to talk about a range of different types of visualization, beginning with the most simple: charts and graphs.
As with our previous project, let’s start by looking at what not to do.
Resources:
- Berinato. 2016. “Is That Chart Saying What You Think it is Saying?”
- Mccready. 2018. 5 Ways Writers Use Misleading Graphs To Manipulate You
This is a tool I want to show.
And pair that with this article.
Instead of talking about charts and graphs, I want to talk about maps.
- Let’s start with this one.
- Here is a stock presentation I developed 10 years ago
- Trump 2016 map
- These things continue in 2016
- A new favorite
Homework
I want you to skim through 4 or 5 of the NYT’s “What’s Going on in this Graph” series. Pick one graph to reimagine in Wednesday’s class. For that graph, create a table in google docs or google sheets of the necessary data.
We will work to visualize this data (create charts and graphs) in Wednesday’s class.
