PhilosophySciencePsychologySocietyCulture
EssaysVideos

Popular

About
DONATENEWSLETTER
/
/
Aeon
DONATE/NEWSLETTER/
/

    Why data visualisation experts talk about truth, beauty, revelation and respect

    In the face of the massive amount of new information people are forced to confront on a daily basis, data visualisation has emerged as a popular tool for making sense of the unceasing stream of increasingly complex sets of facts and figures. The Art of Data Visualisation features several experts dissecting why visualisations have become an indispensable means of communication, and why getting the design right is one of the quickest ways to deliver a nuanced yet comprehensible message.

    Producers: Eric Brown, Lisa Romagnoli

    Website: PBS Digital Studios

    28 October 2015
    A side profile of a man, a map titled “The Georgia Negro: A Social Study” showing the African slave trade routes, and a couple in period attire.

    videoInformation and communication

    Mapping data visualisation’s meteoric rise from Victorian London to today

    6 minutes

    A hand posting graph-covered paper into two different mailboxes. The left is labelled ‘Outgoing Mail’, the right is a red postbox.

    videoTechnology and the self

    Can you get to know someone through visualisations of their personal data?

    3 minutes

    A man in a grey suit and blue tie gesturing with both hands raised, speaking at an indoor event with a wooden backdrop.

    videoNeuroscience

    Why daydreaming should replace multitasking amid our information overload

    7 minutes

    Abstract digital art with colourful geometric shapes and lines on a wood-like background.

    videoTechnology and the self

    Algorithms are opinions, not truth machines, and demand the application of ethics

    3 minutes

    Illustration of a sleek, modern train at a station with curved overhead structures and a minimalist black and white design.

    videoNeuroscience

    How perception leaves the door open for augmented reality to transform our world

    4 minutes

    Aerial photo of a colourful plane mural on a public square with people walking around it. Text: James Bridle, Rainbow Planes.

    videoArt

    Digital art can help us see and judge the internet before it consumes everything

    6 minutes

    A graphic visualisation of complex network connections over a map, with blue and red nodes linked by numerous curved lines.

    videoDemography and migration

    What can a map of notable births and deaths reveal about the spread of culture?

    6 minutes

    A woman using futuristic transparent touchscreen interfaces displaying graphs, maps and data in a dark environment.

    videoTechnology and the self

    We need interactive media not for more thrills but to grasp our world better

    6 minutes

    Image displaying global migration data from 1970-1979 in a colourful, concentric circle graph. Labels list countries and migrant numbers.

    videoDemography and migration

    For a radical new perspective on immigration, picture the US as an ancient tree

    6 minutes