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Tieto On Kaunista (2010)

by David McCandless(Favorite Author)

4.31 of 5 Votes: 1

languge

English

genre

Nonfiction

publisher

Nemo

review 1: Reviewing before I mark this as "read" because this is a book to dip in and out of.David McCandless is a graphic designer who compiled (I can't quite say "wrote" - it's really more "designed") this book as a means of exploring - and demonstrating - how to make information "approachable and beautiful" by presenting it visually.I'm not sure how *useful* the book is -- but it is beautiful.
review 2: Information is Beautiful by David McCandless.I think this will go down as one of the great, if not the greatest, coffee-table book of my generation. Information is beautiful is dedicated to the Internet and, indeed, almost every page seems to reflect a quintessentially contemporary concern or interest. The book's overarching theme seems to be that information is import... moreant because it empowers one to change the world for the better. Aimed partly at Guardian readers with similar interests and views as McCandless, the info-graphics on climate change, politics and theology will no doubt provoke a response from right-leaning readers who might not agree with the language or even the data employed by McCandless and they will no doubt cite Twain's 'There are lies, damned lies and statistics' cliché. There are also a few errors or typos in places, for example, Judas Priest and Deep Purple are described in the Rock genre-ology as both Rock and Metal, although this may be true it seems to be a typo. And sometimes the info-graphics can be accused of over-simplifying or misconstruing information. For example, in evolutionary biology the concept of punctuated equilibrium is often portrayed by the media as antithetical or problematic for Darwinian evolution and indeed the info-graphic on this subject may be interpreted as implying as much. But, having read Richard Dawkins' 'The Blind Watchmaker', I know this is not in fact the case. I expect that any book of info-graphics, no matter how well researched and designed, could be accused of over-simplifying complex issues which often require detailed and patient reading as well as a nuanced interpretation rather than a brief, facile and aesthetically pleasing glance. But one does not thumb through a book of info-graphics looking for comprehensive essays on complex issues. The power and usefulness of the info-graphic is its ability to present information in a dramatic and effective way. I think there are three possible responses a reader can have to any info-graphic. Sometimes the information is already known and accepted in advance as being true by the reader and merely bolsters pre-existing beliefs or opinions, as will be the case with most Guardian readers and the climate change info-graphics. Sometimes the information in a diagram is unknown to the reader and, depending on the simplicity or complexity of the subject, the info-graphic can either form a new belief instantly or inspire one to research the topic further before doing so. For example, after finding the info-graphic on Amazonian deforestation I went on-line to see if it were true and, sadly, based on what I could find, it seems to be true and so I have formed a new opinion on this subject. Thirdly, an info-graphic may contradict a pre-existing belief. When this happens one can either deny the information altogether, dispute the reliability of the data or its interpretation or research the topic further and then, based on what one finds, either confirm or disconfirm one's prior beliefs. My favourite info-graphics were the Rock and Dance music Genre-ologies. I have always been aware of House and Drum 'n' Bass music for example but never really appreciated what they were or where they came from. When I learned, however, that D'n'B was influenced by Dub Reggae (which I already love) it made a connexion and so now I'm listening to Goldie's seminal D'n'B album Timeless which I really like. This, I guess, is the power of the info-graphic. less

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