Laurel Miller

Out of the eight principles I think Compare is the most important because this step shows what data is better than the other. If a company wants to know whether they should keep producing a product or not, the company would compare data from previous years to figure out if they gained or lost money. Comparing data allows one to question what happened or how can we improve the data for the future.

Simplify principle is the most important because talking about data is one thing but having a visual of your data can back it up and make the information you are displaying more effective and believable.

Of the eight principles Few describes, I believe simplify to be the most important. In this day and age were people consume more data than they realize, having something simple and powerful is what stands out. By keeping data simple it allows it to be understood by anybody. A good data visualization can be more complicated, but the most effective ones are the simplest.

According to Few, good data visualization should take the burden of effort off the brain and put it on the eyes. From the eight core principles he mentions I think that “simplify” is the most important. I believe that because we are surrounded by an enormous amount of data and it is an artistry to pick and choose, and present complex concepts in a way that can be understood in one glance.

Simplifying data is most important because a visualization make things much easier to comprehend. Simplifying data helps give the viewer a better understanding of what they are looking at instead of someone trying to retain a list of random data sets.

Of the eight principles, I would argue that Compare is the most vital. Data/information can be completely useless without a comparison of other data sets. For instance, how can a data analyst at a corporation report effective information for decision-making without knowing which data is correct? The entire process of data collection is to compare each component of data/information to other pieces, hoping to conjure a basis to make a decision.

I think that all of the eight principles are important but if I had to choose one I would choose the ‘ask why’ principle. We do a lot of things in life but without an explanation as to why we do it it is almost meaningless to us. Especially when you are dealing with confusing data and numbers I think it is crucial to ask why instead of just throwing numbers around without a real reason. Asking why is an important part in many aspects of life not just data.

I think that the most important principle is simplifying. I think this one is the most important because data can be very complex and intricate. The data would make no sense to anyone if it isn’t broken down. In order to create a visual presentation, and so the data can be understandable it should be simplified.

Out of the eight principles listed in the article, I think that simplifying is the most important. As the word suggests, keeping things/data simple is the most beneficial form of presentation because it makes voluminous data easy to comprehend and reduces ambiguity through a straightforward display. Simple data can also reach out to a larger section of the population, as even uneducated people may be able to benefit from easy to read infographics.

Of the eight principles, I would argue that the ask why is the most important. I feel as though to run a successful business you need to be able to know what the data is telling you and why it is happening. If there is a problem and you do not know why the problem is occurring you can not fix it.

I believe that simplifying is the most important of the 8 core principles. Simplifying the data gives you the basis to execute the other principles. Without simplifying the data, it could be difficult to compare or draw any conclusions from the data. When your data is simplified, there is minimal to no confusion and all of the irrelevant information is pushed aside so that you can focus on the problem.

Of the 8 core principals of data analysis Hoven provided, I believe it is most important to remain skeptical. Too often data visualization can be misleading, intentional or otherwise, due to misrepresentations and poorly executed delivery of information. Modern data analysis tools such as Tableau allow researchers to delve into the various relationships present and form a greater understanding of the information overall.

To me, the most important principle is to be skeptical. A lot of times, we get answers and look no further when often, that answer is incorrect. Sometimes, if we had just questioned the answer a little bit and did some double checking to make sure the answer was right, we might find our mistake before someone else points it out. With data, this is especially true because analyzing the data can seem so intimidating that reanalyzing it is even more overwhelming but a little extra work can make a lot of difference.

Niels Hoven presents 8 core principles to data visualizations in his work “Stephen Few on Data Visualization: 8 Core Principles,” in which, in my opinion, simplify is the most important. I believe that it becomes a simple task for people to be able to find the data visualizations, but the difficult task comes when they have to capture what it is all about. It is an important step to simplify because it is essential in realizing what the overall purpose of the visualization is.

The most important principle is “Be Skeptical” without this step we would never look back and second-guess us. So we would just believe the first thing we do. Which often the first time isn’t the correct way or product.

in my opinion,i think all of those core principles are important, but if i have to pick one, i would choose the simplicity, because in order for the data user to use the data visualization, the visualization should be easy to understand as well as attractive to readers. data visualization could be long and detailed but it should be simple enough to readers so they can continue to look at it.

After reading the Hovan article, I believe that the core principle of ‘be skeptical’ is the most important. While data visualizations are a great tool to have, data can often be misleading or biased towards a certain opinion to get the reader to believe what they are saying. By validating the data presented in front of us, we will be able to have an accurate representation of what we are trying to accomplish.

I think simplifying the data is the most important principle. Without simplification, data would be complicated and difficult to follow. It’s one thing to have good data, but if nobody can understand it it does not matter how good the data is. It is easier and more beneficial for everyone if data is simplified, which is why I think it is the most important principle.

Of the 8 Core Principles “Be Skeptical” is the most important. If we do not question the results of our data and just take our answers from the data analysis we are not learning all we possibly can from the data. Hoven points out that to dig deeper with the research is difficult because of the lack of tools to allow us to do so, but when we do find the right tools, we can uncover another level of information we couldn’t before. At the end of the day, we are analyzing the data to learn the most we can, so why not get the most out of it that you can?

Data visualization is a very exciting topic because of its quick growth in importance for so many aspects of business. I believe the most important aspect Stephen explores is simplify. When evaluating any object of data visualization it is key that the information is translated easily. Something too complex can create confusion and actually counter act the purpose of the piece which is to convey information in a easy to view way.

Simplify. I believe with data, numbers, and graphs the average person feels intimidating by its presentation. This problem can be address by not oversimplifying your data, but making it easier to read, this can be done by choosing the graphs where the data is capture correctly and it’s presentation is not overwhelming. To me this is why simplifying is so important.

Data visualization is a very exciting topic because of its growing importance in so many aspects of business. I believe of the principles explored by Stephen the most important is simplify. The purpose of data visualization is to make it easy for someone to understand a more complex set of data. By making a piece too complex this is blocked and can create more confusion than what would’ve originally occurred.

I believe that the simplification principle is the most important of the eight mentioned in the Hovan’s article. Data visualization is a tool that is extremely effective in understanding data, if the information conveyed inthe visualization is obscure for common folk to read it is useless. I also believe “be skeptical” is important but if a person can’t understand data at all then that data becomes just as useless as biased data.

I think that the most important important principle of the 8 listen in the Hoven article is the “Attend” principle. It focuses on ensuring that one isn’t thrown off by irrelevant data and is focused solely on information significant to what one is trying to find out. A tool that allows us to focus solely on data that is important to the topic in hand is the most important thing of all because what good is data if you don;t know which data sets to attend to.

Simplifying the data visualization is the most important step in the whole 8 step process in my opinion. The whole point of info graphics is to take the strain off of your brain, and put it on your eyes. So without simplifying the data the whole process is ruined. We also have to keep in mind that not everyone is a data analyst, so therefor keeping the models simple is the best way to present and sell whatever it is that you’re researching.

Simplifying is the most important out of the eight principles. We live in a society that constantly throws data at us every day and people need to be able to quickly absorb and internalize the data they are working with. Simplifying the data ensures that many more people will understand the data and be more interested in what it’s saying whether it’s in a company or social setting.

http://www.wsj.com/articles/provider-of-personal-finance-tools-tracks-bank-cards-sells-data-to-investors-1438914620

An incorporation, Yodlee is a company that provides online finance tools for 11 of the 20 biggest banks in the country. Yodlee also has an alternative way to make money, which I found very interesting. They sell their data to investors and research firms in order to help them make smarter choices with investments. It allows them to get a better understanding of different trends.

http://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/flights/

This article I found was a interactive data set that allowed you to pick a city in the United States and then gave you the data on the flight times. The data given were figures such as how much time the airport added on to your travel time or which specific trips took longer. I thought this was interesting data because I plan to travel when I’m older and seeing that there is data that can help me plan my trips accordingly to save myself the frustration of waiting at an airport is great!

http://fivethirtyeight.com/datalab/worried-about-the-stock-market-whatever-you-do-dont-sell/
The article I chose was published on August 24th. This article talks about the falling stock market. The article talks about how this could be because people are worried about China’s economy faltering. The author of the article goes on to offer advice about what you should do and why you should do it. The author says that whatever you do, you should not sell. He says this because most people are invested in the stock market for saving for future expenses like college, or buying a house. He goes on to talk about how often the stock market has seen drops like this since the 1950s. Lastly, the author provides a really good example of why you should not sell. He say, “imagine two people who each invested $1,000 in the S&P 500 at the beginning of 1980. The first one buys once and never sells. The second one is slightly more cautious: He sells any time the market loses 5 percent in a week, and buys back in once it rebounds 3 percent from wherever it bottoms out. At the end of last week, the first investor’s holdings would be worth $18,635. The second investor would have just $10,613.”

http://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffthomson/2013/11/12/emerging-big-data-opportunities-for-cfos/

Emerging Big Data Opportunities For CEOs was published on November 12,2013 in Forbes magazine. According to this article, big data is one of the most influential technology trends for the accounting profession. To explore this trend, Jeff Thomson interviewed Carlos Passi, assistant controller of IBM. Some of the questions answered in this article are: how do CFOs harness big data; what new types of data have emerged that CFOs should pay attention to; what are some examples of CFOs incorporating data from social media sites and online forums as part of their integrated financial reporting responsibilities; what typical roadblocks do CFOs face using big data to drive strategy; how will the way CFOs use big data change in the next five years.
In summary, CFOs will become more effective advocates for change by building and communicating business cases based on big data findings.

The majority of American Twitter users see the platform as a news source as well as an entertainment source. Within the article “How do Americans use Twitter for news?” one can fine that 54% of the Pew Research Sample tweeted about the news during the 4 week observation period. This is important to understanding the primary usage of each for of social media, and what content is the most well-received. In addition noting the frequency of an individual’s tweets allows researchers to understand how active each member of the twitter community is, in regards to original content creation, reposing of tweets, and replies to tweets. Overall the three most common topics were Entertainment News (28%), Sports News (25%), and Government & Political News (17%). Within the sampled tweets 39% of content included the users personal opinion. Overall this can provide a better understanding of how this form of social media is used, and the type of content which is most effectively shared via Twitter.

How do Americans use Twitter for news?
http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/08/19/how-do-americans-use-twitter-for-news/

http://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2015/09/08/4-ways-big-data-will-change-every-business/
The article I chose was posted today on September 8th, 2015. It talks about how Big data will help improve businesses, and also how companies should start using Big data right away to improve their customer experience, products, and other business operations. I thought this was interesting because we just learned what big data is in class. I also found it interesting because it can relate to big or small businesses. Doesn’t matter what type of business you have, big data can improve all of them.

http://football-players.pointafter.com/stories/5435/re-picking-2011-nfl-draft-jj-watt-richard-sherman?utm_medium=cm&utm_source=outbrain&utm_campaign=ao.cm.ob.dt.5435&utm_term=dt#2-Cam-Newton

I chose this article for a few reasons. First, I do not think that people usually think of sports when they think of data, but there is plenty of it. Height, weight, statistics, what pick you were taken are all examples of data. As a sports fan and marketing major ideally I would like to be in a teams marketing department. I also have always found the concepts of redrafts fascinating. They use players stats including touchdowns, interceptions, acts etc. to determine who was the best player that year. For me, this is a relevant piece of data that made me think outside of the box.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2015/09/08/4-ways-big-data-will-change-every-business/

The article I chose lists the top four ways that big data will change every business. The author really emphasized that big data isn’t just for executives of large companies, but that it is for all employees and for all businesses of all sizes. It talked about how for business to grow and for them to be successful, they will need to learn how to acquire data on their customers and their business and use that information to improve their methods. It’s promising for me, being an MIS major, to hear that data is becoming more and more important for the success of a business and that there is increasing demand for people who can collect and analyze this data.

Which Major Has the Most Expensive Textbooks?

The article I chose lists which major has the most expensive textbooks. According to the data sets, economics and physics have the most expensive text books. Their data also shows that music books have the most resale value and accounting and economics are the lowest ones. They also have another data set that shows the percent change in educational books, medical services, new home purchases, and consumer price index. I found this data set very interesting because it shows that the cost of textbooks increased 812% since 1978, 237% more than the increase of medical services. This data applies to everyone in college and it’s interesting to see how the expenses of textbooks extremely rose over the years.

http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/236108
This article talks about how big data has changed the business landscape. I found this article interesting because it talks about how big data is being primarily used by big corporations since small businesses cannot afford to analyze that kind of complex and large data within their traditional IT systems. The article then focuses on how small businesses can benefit and make use of big data to improve their overall productivity and profitability. Thus, this article provides a sort of guideline to small businesses on how to make efficient use of the voluminous and often intimidating big data.

Public Transit Should Be Uber’s New Best Friend

This article presents an analysis of Uber usage in New York City by average household income and access to public transportation. The conclusion that they come up with is that good access to public transportation, along with a higher income, make a person more likely to travel more frequently with Ubers and taxis. It may seem a bit counterintuitive that people in areas without good access to public transportation don’t take advantage of these car services, but the argument that this article makes is that people living in those areas are more likely to own cars. People who live in areas with good public transportation are able to combine private car rides with public transportation, making the combination more affordable than owning a car.

As someone who lives in a city and doesn’t own a car, I take advantage of both public transportation and private car services such as Uber frequently. As a mathematical economics major, it is interesting to see how and why people make financial decisions about something relevant to me.

http://www.businessinsider.com/8-common-degrees-among-top-earning-cfos-2015-8

This article, published on August 27th, lists the most common college degree of top-earning CFOs. It has relevance to me because my major (Economics) is the 4th most common major for Chief Financial Officers in various industries. One part of the article that particularly peaked my interest was that both BS and BA Economics degrees were the tied for 4th and 5th most common, respectively. It’s fascinating that both science-based and art-based sides of the degree were nearly tied, despite focusing on different aspects of the economy,

This article that was published yesterday basically talked about how mothers in the workplace feel forced to leave there jobs since there are not enough jobs with flexible working periods. This is a huge problem that occurs in Human Resources, which is my major, as Human Resources makes the ultimate decision on the time frame for when mothers can come back to work and what there hours have to be. It’s absolutely appalling that 62% of mothers end up changing their role whether it is in the company or through another organization. Managers should be a lot more sympathetic to the overall process of mothers being in the workplace and handle certain tasks accordingly, considering that they complete all of their work adequately.

http://www.benzinga.com/pressreleases/15/09/p5819330/launch-alert-onpoint-sports-delivers-the-most-intelligent-nfl-sports-da
The article I chose is pertinent to my major, Sports Management. This article is about the debut of a new app that will revolutionize fantasy football data analysis, called OnPoint Sports. By providing real-time data with over 1000 individual statistics at their disposal, the app allows fantasy football players to make more educated decisions on who to start and who to sit on their fantasy teams. While the article doesn’t discuss this aspect, access to this data has big implications on sports betting and one day fantasy football leagues such as DraftKings and FanDuel. Data in sports is becoming more and more of the norm. Sports data analytics are now used at the professional level to make executive and roster decisions. All in all, the trend of using data in sports is on the rise, and it’s not going to stop any time soon.

Science Isn’t Broken

The world as we know today has been made through science. What we know about the origins of this world and how things came to be is all related to science. But issues that we face today such as politics or even something like what car manafacturer has the higher quality cars; can these questions be answered by scientific means? Christie Aschwanden goes on to talk about that we can manipulate data to perhaps get a biased answer or to steer the wheel towards what that particular data is headed. He also mentions that we get results from the data, but not necessarily the answer. It must sound like a broken record when someone says there’s no right or wrong answer, but different observations/data yields different results and that’s why it is rather hard to find “the answer.” It’s fascinating that data can be used manipulate information, an example being in the linked article. Hopefully there will be a way in the near future to find these answers that we are missing and fill in the gaps that plague or benefit society.

http://www.businessinsider.com/us-news-and-world-report-best-universities-ranking-2015-9
This article is posted on 9/10/2015. it is a list of the world best universities ranking. it is about data because this list includes input from both academic peers and high school guidance counselors and also graduation and retention rates.

http://www.theguardian.com/global-development/datablog/2015/sep/09/global-age-watch-index-2015-elderly-people-invisible-helpage-international
This data set shows where is the best place for the elderly to live. Many countries do not collect data or monitor the well-being of their elderly thus making them “invisible”. The data set ranks the countries from best to worst and shows the value of the systems they have in place to care for the elderly. What was most interesting was that on average people in the top ten countries live an average of 7.3 years longer than those in the bottom ten.

http://fivethirtyeight.com/datalab/jeb-bushs-tax-plan-is-pretty-weird/

This FiveThirtyEight piece by Ben Casselman delves into Jeb Bush’s early positions on economic policy, more specifically on his tax code propositions. In order to play foil to several different opponents on two political fronts, he has taken several stances that would all be seemingly be contradictory. When blended into a whole (assuming he holds to all of his promises) Jeb’s policies would all at once reduce taxes for the rich, help the working poor, make the tax code simpler, keep older americans in the work force, and overhaul business taxation. If these policies are proven to be able to co-exist, it will be hard to counter Jeb on an economic front.

What 12 Months Of Record-Setting Temperatures Looks Like Across The U.S.

In this article, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released a report claiming that this past year has been the warmest across the U.S. ever. Using info from a New York Times chart from the past, they were able to confirm that we have never had a warmer January-June. Cities such as Seattle, Charlotte, and Los Angeles have all set multiple record high heat temperatures this year.

http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-law-schools/law-rankings?int=a1d108

The article I chose was the ranking of top-tier law schools in the U.S. This statistics provided are very important for you can calculate the average LSAT scorce with any school, you can also compare GPA as well. As a finance and legal studies major I plan on attending Law School after graduation so this information is really important to me

http://singularityhub.com/2015/09/07/the-3-major-industries-ai-and-big-data-will-reshape-this-decade/

The name of the article I read is The 3 major industries AI and Big Data will reshape this decade. This article was published on Sept. 7th, 2015.
According to this article, old systems will collapse as entrepreneurs figure out how to optimize and reinvent inefficient businesses, products, and services to provide consumers with things better, faster and cheaper.
Three major industries are featured as being affected by big data- healthcare, finance, and insurance.
In the insurance industry, an explosion of startups accurately and cheaply gathering massive amounts of data will reinvent every aspect of the industry.
In finance, using big data the service will read through social media posts from the past couple of years and determine from sentiment analysis which industries and values you like and which you don’t.
In healthcare, big data will enable healthcare options to be free or near-free, and better, that people will forgo traditional medical care in favor of these superior options.