Class Schedule
21 Aug | intro
23 Aug | clients
28 Aug | servers
30 Aug | networks
04 Sep | basics lab
06 Sep | structural layer
11 Sep | presentational layer
18 Sep | working with layers
20 Sep | behavior layer
25 Sep | images & design
27 Sep | website lab
02 Oct | object layers
02 Oct | graphics
09 Oct | document markup lab
11 Oct | spreadsheets, formulas & functions |
16 Oct | thoughts about data display |
creating graphical data displays |
next session
18 Oct | Fall Break
23 Oct | database tools
25 Oct | spreadsheets lab
30 Oct | relational databases
01 Nov | tables
06 Nov | relationships
08 Nov | input & output
13 Nov | SQL
15 Nov | complex queries
20 Nov | databases lab
22 Nov | Thanksgiving
27 Nov | presentation design
29 Nov | presentation delivery
04 Dec | presentation lab
13 Dec | 0800-1100 | final in class presentation
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The history of data visualization is not extremely long.
There are a few names to know and things to think about.
Quoting Edward Tufte in the Introduction of The Visual Display of Quantitative Information
Data graphics visually display measured quantities by means of the combined use of points, lines, a coordinate system, numbers, symbols, words, shading, and color ... Modern data graphics can do much more than simply substitute for small statistical tables. At their best, graphics are instruments for reasoning about quantitative information. Often the most effective way to describe, explore and summarize a set of numbers - even a very large set - is to look at pictures of those numbers. Furthermore, of all methods for analyzing and communicating statistical information, well-designed graphics are usually the simplest and at the same time the most powerful.
Visualization of data has a long history, but the addition of more powerful computing and newer programs has given us the opportunity to display data in ways that are enlightening.
How to Lie with Statistics and The Best and Worst of Statistical Graphics by Michael Friendly at York University, Canada
Jacques Bertin and his classic book, The Semiology of Graphics
Edward Tufte and his three classics
Scholars at York University in Canada have put together a useful gallery of good methods of display and also of ideas to avoid
Lessons for data analysts from the Challenger disaster tells us good data display could be a life or death issue.
But there are always several different ways to view the same situation and not everyone agrees with Tufte.
Let's re-iterate our points again.