let's do some thinking about data visualisation thinking

LET’S HAVE A THINK ABOUT DATA VISUALISATION THINKING

Andy Kirk

@visualisingdata

Data visualisation specialist: Trainer, lecturer, researcher, author, design consultant, speaker, twitterer...

Theories and techniques

Real-world practice

TALENT

TALENT

THINKING

5 ATTRIBUTES OF GOOD VISUALISATION

THINKING

#1 ORGANISED

Sequenced thinking

1. Establish the visualisation’s purpose

2. Acquire, familiarise with and prepare your data

3. Determine the editorial focus of your subject matter

4. Conceive your design: data representation and presentation

5. Construct and complete your design solution PR

ACTIC

AL

CREA

TIVE

Recommended talk/project...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMB_6OeCEP8

Process but not procedure

“There's a strand of the data viz world that argues that everything could be a bar chart. That's possibly true but

also possibly a world without joy”

Amanda Cox, New York Times

“There's a strand of the data viz world that argues that everything could be a bar chart. That's possibly true but

also possibly a world without joy”

Amanda Cox, New York Times

http://blogs.hbr.org/hbr/hbreditors/2013/03/power_of_visualizations_aha_moment.html

Framework for thinking rather than rules for learning

Where to begin? What pathway to take?

http://www.mattneuman.com/maze.gif

Cohesion and flow of thinking

The most effective and efficient way to sequence your thinking.

Organised thinking for visualisation

#2 CONTEXTUAL Framing our thinking

Boring!

YOU ARE KAYAKING ALONG THE COAST OF GREENLAND AND YOU

NEED A ‘CHART’ TO NAVIGATE

The influence of context

(HT to Mark Daggett @heavysixer)

Three options: Which is best?

http://www.visualisingdata.com/index.php/2013/03/tactile-visualisations-inuit-wood-maps/

It needs to cope with being wet


It needs to float


It needs to work in the dark


Needs to work without cellular signal


It shouldn’t be cumbersome to use


We can’t rely on anything that needs power


It is too cold to work without gloves


Final score


http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0123740371/ref=as_li_tf_il?ie=UTF8&tag=visuadata-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=0123740371

“...this example reinforces my thesis that in order to design a tool, we must make our best efforts to

understand the larger social and physical context within which it is intended to function.”

Bill Buxton, “Sketching User Experiences”

“...this example reinforces my thesis that in order to design a tool, we must make our best efforts to

understand the larger social and physical context within which it is intended to function.”

Bill Buxton, “Sketching User Experiences”

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0123740371/ref=as_li_tf_il?ie=UTF8&tag=visuadata-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=0123740371

What’s the best visualisation solution? It always depends.

Contextual thinking for visualisation

#3 IMAGINATIVE Harnessing instincts

http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2014/01/what-you-get-when-30-people-draw-a-world-map-from-memory/282901/

Our instincts offer a unique perspective


http://www.visualisingdata.com/index.php/2013/06/a-short-essay-about-interpretation-doodling-perceptions-and-people/

http://visualizing.org/galleries/peoples-choice-visualizing-london-2012-olympic-games


Importance of sketching

http://www.monumentvalleygame.com/img/screenshot2.jpg

Influence and inspiration

http://www.visualisingdata.com/index.php/2012/05/the-fine-line-between-plagiarism-and-inspiration/

Influence and inspiration

EXERCISE Audience participation

ANALYSIS ABOUT THE IMPACT OF PSYCHOTHERAPY TREATMENT ON

PATIENTS IN ALASKA, 2013

What keywords and imagery come to mind?

Care Help

Support Improvement Deterioration

Healthy Unhealthy

People Individuals

Anonymised Integrity

Authoritative Sensitivity

Transparency


http://design-seeds.com/palettes/ArcticLove600.png


GRAPHIC TO MARK THE MILESTONE OF THE 500TH EXECUTION IN TEXAS


What mental visualisations – instinctive keywords and imagery – form when you think about a task, its topic and its data?

Imaginative thinking for visualisation

#4 JOURNALISTIC Harnessing curiosity

http://bklynr.com/block-by-block-brooklyns-past-and-present/

Self-initiated curiosity

http://guns.periscopic.com/


http://guns.periscopic.com/?year=2010


The journalist-analyst sensibility to find and show

One to watch: Christopher Ingraham, Washington Post

http://www.washingtonpost.com/people/christopher-ingraham

“A photo is never an objective reflection, but always an interpretation of reality... I see data visualization as sort of

a new photojournalism – a highly editorial activity.”

Moritz Stefaner

“A photo is never an objective reflection, but always an interpretation of reality... I see data visualization as sort of

a new photojournalism – a highly editorial activity.”

Moritz Stefaner

http://well-formed-data.net/archives/1027/worlds-not-stories

http://i.imgur.com/RmXbrDZ.jpg

Editorial focus: Filtering

http://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2014/jul/05/diego-maradona-belgium-famous-photo#_

Editorial focus: Representative angle?

https://twitter.com/toddlerlex/status/440393501810118656/photo/1

Editorial focus: Other angles available?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_Landmesser

Pattern matching, sense-making, sniffing out the story

http://www.bloomberg.com/billionaires/latest


http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/10/19/upshot/peyton-manning-breaks-touchdown-passing-record.html?abt=0002&abg=0


What triggers your data-focused curiosity? What ‘photos’ of your data do you need to

convey your message?

Journalistic thinking for visualisation

#5 CRITICAL

Developing the craft

http://eagereyes.org/blog/2014/beyond-the-knee-jerk-reaction

Independent critical thinking

“There is a tendency to just reflexively make fun of certain types of charts, in particular pie charts and

3D charts. While that is often justified, there are also exceptions... we have to suppress the knee-jerk reflex

and give them a moment of thought before ripping them apart.”

Robert Kosara

“There is a tendency to just reflexively make fun of certain types of charts, in particular pie charts and

3D charts. While that is often justified, there are also exceptions... we have to suppress the knee-jerk reflex

and give them a moment of thought before ripping them apart.”

Robert Kosara

http://eagereyes.org/blog/2014/beyond-the-knee-jerk-reaction

Choices: The breadth of critical thinking (136 charts in 34 secs)

http://openvisconf.com/2014/

Choices: The depth of critical thinking

Choices: The depth of critical thinking

https://www.vitsoe.com/gb/about/good-design

Dieter Rams’ ‘10 principles of good design’

“Designers Touching Their Face”

http://dttf.tumblr.com/

“#8 Good design is thorough down to the last detail... Nothing must be arbitrary or left to chance.”


“#8 Good design is thorough down to the last detail... Nothing must be arbitrary or left to chance.”


https://www.vitsoe.com/gb/about/good-design

EXERCISE Team participation

Prizes to be won! Need two teams of 3 people…

http://hint.fm/wind/

Identify as many visualisation design decisions as possible...

How can your resolve the best design choices from the vast range

and depth of options available?

Critical thinking for visualisation

5 ATTRIBUTES OF GOOD VISUALISATION

THINKING

ORGANISED CONTEXTUAL IMAGINATIVE

JOURNALISTIC CRITICAL

Let’s get this little guy working

LET’S HAVE A THINK ABOUT DATA VISUALISATION THINKING

Andy Kirk

@visualisingdata

let's do some thinking about data visualisation thinking

Data & Analytics

imaginative thinking

contextual thinking

organised thinking

imagery form

data visualization

selfinitiated curiosityhttp

unique perspectivehttp

data visualisation specialist