Infoporn & Data Addiction
[ Comments Off ]Posted on September 15, 2009 by admin in Technology
Tuesday, September 15th, 2009Our endless plot to chart your demise by making you view graphic depictions of life, work, and money.
Now that there’s an Internet Addiction Treatment Center, I wonder if there are plans for a treatment center for infographic addiction? As I pondered this, I wondered, of course, what a “no graphs infographic” would look like. My quick prototype is on the left. Which raises an interesting question: If infographics are such a powerful communication tool, why am I writing about them? We’ve touched on flow charts and a variety of amusing infographics before, but there seems to be an endless supply of them. I’m especially partial to the kind that puts incomprehensible things into tidy visual form, like what does a million dollars like? Which is why I especially like What If You Printed the Internet? Economic data is also always more palatable when viewed graphically, as in this Good Magazine piece. A bunch of little “MSN Buddies” out of work are much cuter than a photo of a bunch of haggard hungry people in line. Technophiles in particular are naturally drawn to data visualizations, which is why the food-group-like pyramid graphics Balance Your Media Diet and The Hierarchy of Digital Distractions have made the rounds lately. It’s interesting that “gaming” and “device failure” top the respective pyramids. If I don’t get treatment for my little graphic addiction problem, I’ll be back with more soon. But if you’re yearning for more now, check out some of the sites below for more interesting data visualizations. But first, can someone explain to me what Iowa’s problem is? Read the rest of this entry »
No Need To Get Graphic
[ Comments Off ]Posted on August 15, 2009 by admin in Editorial & Opinion
Saturday, August 15th, 2009Or is there? These handy infographics of Aircrashes and dead Twitter users could save your life and your time.
Statistics Of The “Social Media Revolution” |
If you want to die on your next flight, take an Aeroflot DC-9 from the United States to Russia in August, and make sure to get a seat in First Class. At least that’s what this interesting chart suggests. Sometimes an infographic can say so much more than words, which makes the fact that I’m writing about it a little ironic (see infographic below). As I’ve pointed out before, 78.6% of all statistics mentioned in casual conversation are inaccurate. But I still find infographics and flowcharts fascinating. How else could you really wrap your mind around what a million dollars looks like ? This set of graphics, for instance, speaks volumes about how projects really evolve, and in a way that almost every guilty party involved would probably find amusing. And in spite of all the hype about Twitter (including the info in the clip at left) this set of graphics quickly puts things in perspective. The GOP/Dem debates about war and health care that I recently mentioned in this piece can also be summed up more quickly with two photos and some simple copy. What I’d really find interesting though, is if someone made an interactive graphic of how people from a broad set of demographics use their time throught the day. Oh wait. Never mind. Have any interesting infographics of your own to share? Read the rest of this entry »
Do You Need A Flowchart?
[ 1 Comment ]Posted on December 19, 2008 by admin in Lifestyle & Culture
Friday, December 19th, 2008I don’t know. Let’s do a flowchart.
We’ve talked about flowcharts here before. Although I’m a pretty organized person, I don’t actually find them useful for getting organized, but I do find them quite amusing. That’s why, when I dropped some lettuce on the floor as I was making a salad today, I realized I had to jump on the flow chart bandwagon and do one of my own. You see, I like simple rules, but the Three Second Rule for whether or not to eat food that’s been on the floor is just too simple. So here’s my flow chart assessing the problem. Think you might find a flow chart useful for a problem of your own, but you aren’t quite sure? Try the Flowchart Of Should You Make A Flowchart. Still not sure you’re getting the hang of it? Here’s A Guide To Understanding Flowcharts In Flowchart Form. And if you’re for some reason questioning the truth of the information I’m sharing, here are The Steps To Determine The Factual Content Of A Statement. You should be careful with this sort of self-referential analysis though, lest you become trapped in a Hasselhoffian Recursion.
I Dropped Food On The Floor Should I Eat It Flowchart
[ 2 Comments ]Posted on December 19, 2008 by admin in Editorial & Opinion
Friday, December 19th, 2008Is the three second rule too simple? Here’s a chart.
Here’s a carefully diagrammed assessment based on the Three Second Rule. More info here. Read the rest of this entry »
Careful Planning Enhances Procrastination
[ Comments Off ]Posted on September 6, 2008 by admin in Lifestyle & Culture
Saturday, September 6th, 2008With the right tools, ANY project can be delayed almost indefinitely…
It’s the weekend, and you finally have some time to organize some of those projects you couldn’t get to during the week. Why not implement a flow chart to get things on track? At left is a chart I resort to when I want things I don’t really need. Just substitute any phrase for “Pan Flute” (like, “60 inch Plasma TV” or “orgasm”) and voila! Decision made. I already saved two hours and a few hundred dollars today thanks to that simple chart. If you’re having trouble getting your project rolling, check out the Procrastination Flow Chart. Graphs can also be useful. Peruse the user-submitted graphs at GraphJam.com for useful analyses like Waking Time Spent On Boobies or this concise assessment of the information age. Thinking about upgrading to Windows Vista? Here’s a chart to help you. As we’ve pointed out before, even technologically impaired organizations like the RIAA use flow charts. See the RIAA Lawsuit Decision Matrix. This Things To Say During Sex diagram is not really a flow chart or a graph, but has some good advice all the same. And lastly, when you go back to work on Monday, remember: succesful BlameStorming doesn’t just happen. Proper planning is essential.