In Lesson 1, Topic 1, we will begin this course by understanding how the human visual system functions in order to help us understand its’ significance in reading and interpreting data. With this understanding, we will be able to avoid common pitfalls that are easy to fall into when consuming data visualizations. Given how the human visual system works, it turns out that we are able to carry out some visual tasks and comparisons more easily and effectively than others. In order to know how to move forward, we need to be able to look closely at the different elements of visuals we see and understand how these elements have been put together.
An optical illusion of straight lines that seem to curve
Claude Shannon’s schematic diagram of a general communication system, from “A Mathematical Theory of Communication”
Exercise 1.1a. Write down a list of three different graphical displays of data (charts, maps, dashboards, etc) that you have interacted with in the past month. Let one of them be from your professional life, another from public life (your community, state, country or even global), and the last one from your own personal life. For now just write down a simple phrase or sentence that describes the source, like “fitness activity tracker” or “team performance dashboard”. We’ll use the answer to this question as the starting point for your course project.
Exercise 1.1b. Take a look at this image and answer the two questions below.