30 minutes of data visualization

Transcript

1. ffunction
   inc.
   © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
   WORKSHOP
   30 MINUTES
   OF DATA VISUALIZATION
   Sébastien Pierre, FFunction inc.
   @Hack Ta Ville, September 8th 2012
   www.ffctn.com
   

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2. ffunction
   inc.
   © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
   THE GOALS
   ➔
   CRASH COURSE TO BASIC DATA VISUALIZATION
   – Using free, publicly available tools (Google Docs)
   – Learn the core principles of “dataviz”
   – Learn how to understand a dataset
   – Learn how to tell a visual story
   

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3. ffunction
   inc.
   © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
   DATA
   

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4. ffunction
   inc.
   © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
   IT STARTS WITH DATA
   ➔
   DATA IS YOUR RAW MATERIAL
   Select it with care, respect it, understand it.
   Always prefer raw data to already
   arranged/aggregated data.
   

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5. ffunction
   inc.
   © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
   BE HUMBLE
   ➔
   DATA COMES BEFORE YOUR IDEA
   You might already think of a great visual for your
   data, but it might just not work with the specific
   data that you have!
   

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6. ffunction
   inc.
   © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
   BE TRUE
   ➔
   DATA MIGHT NOT SAY WHAT YOU'D EXPECT
   You might already have an opinion on what the
   data should show/say... but it might very well tell
   a very different story from the one you had in
   mind!
   

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7. ffunction
   inc.
   © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
   BE PREPARED TO FAIL
   ➔
   DATA MIGHT NOT HAVE ANYTHING TO TELL
   Sometimes the data doesn't tell anything,
   however you present it, however you process it.
   It's OK, you've just trained your ability to visualize
   data fast!*
   *but you'll often be rewarded if you keep trying!
   

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8. ffunction
   inc.
   © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
   DATA VISUALIZATION
   

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9. ffunction
   inc.
   © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
   TRANSFORMING NUMBERS
   

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10. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    INTO VISUALS
    

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11. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    BASED ON A LANGUAGE OF SHAPES, SIZES AND COLORS
    

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12. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    WORKSHOP
    

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13. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    STEP 1: GET THE DATA
    ➔
    SPENDING BY THE GLOBAL MIDDLE CLASS
    Dataset created by Prof. Homi Kharas at the Brooking
    Institution in New-York and kindly provided by the
    Redwood Group http://www.redwoodgroup.net
    ➔
    Get the data http://goo.gl/KxciV
    

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14. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    The data represents the projected spending of the middle class
    in major regions worldwide, from 2009 to 2030
    

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15. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    STEP 2: GET TO KNOW THE DATA
    ➔
    WHAT IS REPRESENTED?
    Identify the variables used in the data
    ➔
    WHAT ARE THE DIMENSIONS?
    Measure the span of the variables
    ➔
    CAN WE SPOT TRENDS?
    Try to spot interesting changes or patterns
    

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16. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    REGIONS
    DATA ELEMENTS
    

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17. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    REGIONS YEARS
    DATA ELEMENTS
    

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18. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    REGIONS YEARS
    SPENDING
    ($)
    DATA ELEMENTS
    

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19. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    REGIONS YEARS
    SPENDING
    ($)
    DATA ELEMENTS
    9 regions
    4 in Asia
    9 regions
    4 in Asia
    

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20. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    REGIONS YEARS
    SPENDING
    ($)
    DATA ELEMENTS
    30 years
    3 actual
    27 projected
    30 years
    3 actual
    27 projected
    

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21. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    

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22. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    MIN/MAX/AVERAGE
    help you understand
    the data
    MIN/MAX/AVERAGE
    help you understand
    the data
    

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23. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    But the numbers
    are too big to be
    relatable
    But the numbers
    are too big to be
    relatable
    

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24. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    

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25. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    So we just display
    the rounded numbers
    in billion dollars
    So we just display
    the rounded numbers
    in billion dollars
    

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26. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    Average is
    1/4 of the max, which
    hints at some extremes
    Average is
    1/4 of the max, which
    hints at some extremes
    

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27. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    A visualization could
    help understand
    the trends
    A visualization could
    help understand
    the trends
    

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28. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    

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29. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    REMARK #1: There
    is a big increase
    to the max around
    the end of the timeline
    REMARK #1: There
    is a big increase
    to the max around
    the end of the timeline
    

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30. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    REMARK #2: Average
    growth seems linear,
    with a slight inflexion
    around the middle of the
    timeline
    REMARK #2: Average
    growth seems linear,
    with a slight inflexion
    around the middle of the
    timeline
    

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31. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    REMARK #3: The min
    doesn't really take off
    REMARK #3: The min
    doesn't really take off
    

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32. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    

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33. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    A visualization of the
    whole data gives more
    explanation about
    what we've noticed
    A visualization of the
    whole data gives more
    explanation about
    what we've noticed
    

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34. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    INSIGHT #1: India is
    going to do better than
    the #1 in 2029
    INSIGHT #1: India is
    going to do better than
    the #1 in 2029
    

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35. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    INSIGHT #2: Somewhere
    around 2023, India, China
    and the rest of Asia
    are each going to
    outperform the US
    INSIGHT #2: Somewhere
    around 2023, India, China
    and the rest of Asia
    are each going to
    outperform the US
    

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36. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    INSIGHT #3: South America,
    Middle East and Africa are
    apparently not really
    taking off
    INSIGHT #3: South America,
    Middle East and Africa are
    apparently not really
    taking off
    

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37. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    We could have started by
    looking at the data directly,
    but trends are definitely
    easier to spot here
    We could have started by
    looking at the data directly,
    but trends are definitely
    easier to spot here
    

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38. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    STEP 3: WHAT'S THE STORY?
    ➔
    TURN INSIGHTS INTO A STORY
    We've found three notable things in the data,
    now how can we communicate them visually?
    

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39. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    IDEA 1
    The US is often the point of reference in
    economy, so how do other countries
    compare to the US?
    

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40. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    

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41. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    This visualization actually
    doesn't tell a really different
    story from the original
    data itself, as North America
    was conveniently close
    to the X axis
    This visualization actually
    doesn't tell a really different
    story from the original
    data itself, as North America
    was conveniently close
    to the X axis
    

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42. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    

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43. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    Focusing on just Asia, we
    put the highlight on 2023,
    where India, China, and the
    rest of India lead the way
    Focusing on just Asia, we
    put the highlight on 2023,
    where India, China, and the
    rest of India lead the way
    

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44. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    While Japan stays stable
    and brings another
    perspective to the picture
    While Japan stays stable
    and brings another
    perspective to the picture
    

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45. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    IDEA 2
    India will have a significant growth,
    so how will other countries
    do in comparison?
    

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46. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    

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47. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    We tell an alarming story
    of the decline of today's
    big economies (compared
    to India). The end of the
    world as we know it will
    be 2023
    We tell an alarming story
    of the decline of today's
    big economies (compared
    to India). The end of the
    world as we know it will
    be 2023
    

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48. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    IDEA 3
    Absolute amounts often hide the
    variations in small numbers,
    what if we focus only
    on the growth?
    

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49. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    

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50. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    Looking at the growth,
    we tell the optimistic story
    of the growth and rise of
    Sub-Saharian Africa
    Looking at the growth,
    we tell the optimistic story
    of the growth and rise of
    Sub-Saharian Africa
    

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51. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    KEY TAKEAWAYS
    

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52. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    1:DATA
    ➔
    MASSAGE THE DATA
    Data will rarely give you insights as-is. You need
    to transform it, clean it and simplify it to make it
    useful.
    

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53. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    2:VISUALIZATION
    ➔
    LOOK FOR TRENDS & PATTERNS
    Although the numbers will give you hints, basic
    visualizations will help you quickly see the overall
    trends as well as spot points of interests in the
    data.
    

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54. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    3:STORY
    ➔
    THERE'S NO OBJECTIVE VISUALIZATION
    A visualization is always a perspective on the
    data, and different visualizations will tell different
    things with the same data.*
    * Note that visualizations also often have more authority than illustrations in the reader's mind.
    

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55. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    4:TOOLS
    ➔
    LESS IS MORE
    You can use simple, free tools to do data-
    visualization. You don't need to be a programmer,
    designer or journalist to get started – but you'll
    learn to be all of these along the way!
    

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56. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    Hacking Corruption
    10-11 Novembre 2012
    DATA AGAINST CORRUPTION
    

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57. ffunction
    inc.
    © FFUNCTION INC, 2011
    DID YOU ENJOY
    THIS PRESENTATION?
    sebastien@ffctn.com / @ffunction
    WWW.FFCTN.COM
    

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