How we tell stories with data.
The information around us is endless. Random pieces of data that exist, but don’t tell us anything meaningful.
Data becomes most interesting when we find the patterns, and use them to create narratives. We can discover insights, find meaning and turn intuition into substance.
Data can be pretty great. And so this week, we’re sharing stories of interesting things people have done with data.
Mapping NYC by taxi rides.
An open-source exploration of New York City’s neighbourhoods, nightlife and traffic, all using publicly available taxi and Uber data. Not only are the maps themselves beautiful, the conclusions the author draws about the movements and behaviours of people are insightful and deeply informative.
Guessing someone’s age from their name.
Picturing Clarence and Willard will look quite different from picturing Jayden and Mason. And that has a lot to do with the popularity of various names across history. Publicly available data allows us to examine the rise and fall of names, and the effects of trends on our identities.
How we buy the great outdoors.
How can we generate brand preference that doesn’t evaporate in the politics of the retail floor? This man started by analysing the purchase experience of outdoor gear and sports brands, across 600 brands and 1000 product lines. In doing so he created compelling customer profiles of who buys what and why, that transcend the category.
The Scrabblers.
Nigeria, a country of 173 million people, has recently started producing a surprising number of world champions… in Scrabble. They play unconventionally, eschewing the standard ‘big plays’ for shorter words and more tactical manoeuvres, and it’s paying off.
From Subaru to ‘Lesbaru.’
No lede burying: this is the story of how data led to Subaru cultivating its image as a car for lesbians.
