The ability to convey a wealth of information is possibly one of the most essential skills to have in the tech industry. It was often that I looked at a graph or a chart and wondered what the big picture truly was. What was the overall message? Could it be simplified?
This video seemed to have done so in ways that I thought were astounding. Take the example of the simulation of the average air control in U.S. airspace. If one sees a information blip that says “over 14,000 flights are in the air at any given hour”, it would make the viewer pressed to visualize that. The complete simulation showed overlapping colors that displayed the density of flight patterns, including those that come out of the Northeastern corridor and Southern California. I would never have seen the trends that signified the most industrialized regions of our country as having the busiest airspace. Or, take the election results from 2008. Would it have been possible to mentally visualize all of the possible candidates favored regions, socio-economic approval ratings, etc…? Instead we have a wheel with spokes of information that can appear and disappear at the click of the users mouse. The ability to sort the information accordingly makes the user that much informed about the subject.
This video is an interesting showcase of how visual aesthetics and web design come together to make information retention and cognation that much more easier for the public. I look forward to more finds pertaining to this matter.