Joyful Infographics

In Joyful Infographics: A Friendly, Human Approach to Data, one of the leading graphic designers of recent times shows how a judicious use of humor can make infographics more understandable. Written in non-academic, easy-to-understand language, and with historical and contemporary visual examples presented throughout, this small book provides a short history of light-hearted graphics. The text outlines nine clear ways to make graphics more understandable, explores the importance of the audience, shows you how to make information come alive during presentations through live-action ‘performance’ graphics, discusses why joy and smiling are good for you, and shows you how not to overdo it. The author website, featuring enlargeable graphics, can be found here: https://www.joyfulinfographics.com/. Even if a subject is delicate, controversial, or taboo, being graphically friendly to the audience is the right way to explain it. It is the opposite of being clinically cold and just presenting the facts. If you can get readers to smile--the smile of recognition when they understand the graphic--you are more than halfway toward getting them to continue reading, and understanding, the intention of the piece. Joyful Infographics teaches you how to do just that.

Building Science Graphics: An illustrated guide to communicating science through diagrams and visualizations is a practical guide for anyone—regardless of previous design experience and preferred drawing tools—interested in creating science-centric illustrated explanatory diagrams. Starting with a clear introduction to the concept of information graphics and their role in contemporary science communication, it then outlines a process for creating graphics using evidence-based design strategies. The heart of the book is composed of two step-by-step graphical worksheets, designed to help jump-start any new project. This is both a textbook and a practical reference for anyone that needs to convey scientific information in an illustrated form for articles, poster presentations, slide shows, press releases, blog posts, social media posts and beyond.

This book closes the gap between what people think Excel can do and what they can achieve in the tool. Over the past few years, recognition of the importance of effectively visualizing data has led to an explosion of data analysis and visualization software tools. But for many people, Microsoft Excel continues to be the workhorse for their data visualization needs, not to mention the only tool that many data workers have access to. Although Excel is not a specialist data visualization platform, it does have strong capabilities. The default chart types do not need to be the limit of the tool’s data visualization capabilities, and users can extend its features by understanding some key elements and strategies. Data Visualization in Excel provides a step-by-step guide to creating more advanced and often more effective data visualizations in Excel and is the perfect guide for anyone who wants to create better, more effective, and more engaging data visualizations.

Data visualization is the art and science of making information visible. On paper and in our imaginations, it’s a language of shapes and colors that holds our best ideas and most important questions. As we find ourselves swimming in data of all kinds, visualization can help us to understand, express, and explore the richness of the world around us. No matter your age or background, this book opens the door to new ways of thinking and sharing through the power of data visualization. Data Visualization for People of All Ages is a field guide to visual literacy, born from the author’s personal experience working with world-class scholars, engineers, and scientists. By walking through the different ways of showing data—including color, angle, position, and length—you’ll learn how charts and graphs truly work so that no visualization is ever a mystery or out of reach. It doesn’t stop at what fits on a page, either. You’ll journey into cutting-edge topics like data sonification and data physicalization, using sound and touch to share data across the different senses. Packed with practical examples and exercises to help you connect the dots, this book will teach you how to create and understand data visualizations on your own—all without writing a single line of code or getting tangled up in software. Written with accessibility in mind, this book invites everyone to the table to share the joy of one of today’s most necessary skills. Perfect for home or classroom use, this friendly companion gives people of all ages everything they need to start visualizing with confidence.

An indispensable guide to visual ethics, this book addresses the need for critical thinking and ethical behavior among students and professionals responsible for a variety of mass media visual messages. Written for an ever-growing discipline, authors Paul Martin Lester, Stephanie A. Martin, and Martin Rodden-Smith give serious ethical consideration to the complex field of visual communication. The book covers the definitions and uses of six philosophies, analytical methods, cultural awareness, visual reporting, documentary, citizen journalists, advertising, public relations, typography, graphic design, data visualizations, cartoons, motion pictures, television, computers and the web, augmented and virtual reality, social media, the editing process, and the need for empathy. At the end of each chapter are case studies for further analysis and interviews with thoughtful practitioners in each field of study, including Steven Heller and Nigel Holmes. This second edition has also been fully revised and updated throughout to reflect on the impact of new and emerging technologies. This book is an important resource for students of photojournalism, photography, filmmaking, media and communication, and visual communication, as well as professionals working in these fields.

Learn how expert data visualization designers reason about their craft In The Art of Insight: How Great Visualization Designers Think, renowned visualization designer and educator Alberto Cairo, in conversation with several leaders in the field, delivers an inspiring exploration of how they make design choices. The book is a celebration of visualization, and a personal journey that dives into subjects like: How the professional background and life experiences of every designer shape their choices of what to visualize and how to visualize it. What designers from different countries and cultures, and working in different fileds, such as data art, data analytics, or data journalism, have in common, or how they differ from each other. How designers reflect on research, ethical reasoning, and also aesthetic judgments, to make decisions such as selecting the most appropriate ways to encode data, or the most appealing visual style. Perfect for data scientists and data journalists, The Art of Insight will also inspire artists, analysts, statisticians, and any other professional who uses data visualizations.

How can we give data physical form? And how might those creations change the ways we experience data and the stories it can tell? Making with Data: Physical Design and Craft in a Data-Driven World provides a snapshot of the diverse practices contemporary creators are using to produce objects, spaces, and experiences imbued with data. Across 25+ beautifully-illustrated chapters, international artists, designers, and scientists each explain the process of creating a specific data-driven piece—illustrating their practice with candid sketches, photos, and design artifacts from their own studios. The author website, featuring updates and more information about the projects behind the book, can be found here: https://makingwithdata.org/. Featuring influential voices in computer science, data science, graphic design, art, craft, and architecture, Making with Data is accessible and inspiring for enthusiasts and experts alike.

A full-colour guide to the data that shapes our lives, looking behind the headlines and the soundbites to what's really going on. What are the real effects of the austerity measures? What is the true human cost of the war in Afghanistan?