Visualizing information leads to insight often not found in text or numbers. Something as simple as flickr's tag cloud can provide a snapshot of the activities of millions of flickr users. Much more effective for sensemaking than browsing images and trying to get a feel of the zeitgeist. Technology strips away our biases when representing information. Worldmapper serves a similar jolt in visualizing information. The images of infant mortality, population density, wealth, drought, and others are jarring. The maps on education reveal interesting disparities in science growth, illiteracy, and education spending.
Posted by gsiemens at January 16, 2007 7:34 AM | TrackBack