Comments for Graphic Sociology

Comment on Vintage American infographics | Susan Schulten by Susan Schulten

Susan Schulten — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 15:50:06 +0000

Laura: Thanks for the wonderful review and commentary — I enjoyed it very much. Your readers might be interested in this piece, which discusses some of the ideas of the final chapter of “Mapping the Nation,” particularly the evolution of statistical cartography and infographics.

http://www.fastcodesign.com/1671605/how-a-civil-war-soldier-invented-the-american-infographic

Comment on Urban and rural housing vacancy rates by Jan Willem Tulp

Jan Willem Tulp — Wed, 12 Dec 2012 21:58:13 +0000

Dear Laura,

thank you very much for your thorough analysis. That is very informative!

I’d like to add one dimension to your analysis which you don’t seem to mention, but which is a very important part of creating a visualization, namely the purpose, context and the audience of the visualization. In this case the visualization was built as part of a contest, and the jury consisted of people from the Eyeo Festival a very artistic and creative festival. In a situation like this I have made choices that would hopefully appeal to this specific jury and increase my chances of winning. In a different situation (same data, different situation, for instance used internally on a daily basis by policy makers) I would made have different choices.

The exact assignment was: “create an interactive portrait of America by visualizing the 2010 census data”. This leaves it completely open.

So, I totally agree with your analysis, yet at the same time I think it is very important to take context, audience, purpose, etc. into account when evaluating a visualization.

Thanks again, I can’t wait to read your next analysis. It’s a great contribution to the community!

Comment on Visualize This | book review by Alec Campbell

Alec Campbell — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 18:00:02 +0000

Great Review. I particularly like your pointing out that in many instances tables are the preferred graphic.

Comment on Working New York City subway map by Laura Norén

Laura Norén — Fri, 02 Nov 2012 14:44:38 +0000

And of course, the bridges are open for pedestrians and bikers, which is not a bad option for people going from Brooklyn to Lower Manhattan, either.

Comment on Working New York City subway map by Charles

Charles — Fri, 02 Nov 2012 13:13:01 +0000

Worth mentioning (as someone who lives in Brooklyn) that the subways are running local within Brooklyn, and there are three focal hubs where you can take shuttle buses to Manhattan, so we’re not totally isolated! The main point stands, however: transit is still very much disrupted and it’s not clear exactly when things will be anywhere near back to normal. As someone who commutes to the Bronx (through Manhattan), I’m hoping it’s sooner rather than later.

Comment on Congressional demographics by EM

EM — Tue, 16 Oct 2012 02:36:47 +0000

very cool. I wonder whether a rainbow shape could have been used for the age as well, in the following way: full rainbow = average lifespan (let’s say 85) and then fill it accordingly for the three different groups. That would be quite telling by showing how close to the beginning (or end) of their lifespan the people are (or how wise…)

Comment on Race and gender in higher education – who gets degrees? by And the Diploma Goes To… » Citings and Sightings

And the Diploma Goes To… » Citings and Sightings — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 16:56:23 +0000

[...] Norén recently posted an illustration of who is earning degrees in the U.S., highlighting the growing percentage of women earning bachelor’s, master’s, and professional/doctoral degrees since the [...]

Comment on Race and gender in higher education – who gets degrees? by Charlie

Charlie — Mon, 17 Sep 2012 16:15:08 +0000

Unfortunately there is a disparity in wage upon graduation. But the important thing is that women and men alike continue to pursue higher education. Steven Henager College in Boise is an Institution with several top programs. Business Management, Computer Tech and Networking, Medical Specialties, and other high waging occupations are taught without discriminating against gender.

Comment on Race and gender in higher education – who gets degrees? by Weekend Reading « Backslash Scott Thoughts

Weekend Reading « Backslash Scott Thoughts — Sun, 16 Sep 2012 17:19:22 +0000

[...] Race and Gender in Higher Education – Who Gets Degrees? [...]

Comment on New direction for Graphic Sociology by Keith Appleby

Keith Appleby — Thu, 13 Sep 2012 16:47:45 +0000

No doubt. Tufte is the classic.