2025-09-16 05:48:52
The State of Our Senses
Humans have five senses: taste, touch, sight, hearing, and smell. They’re our built-in data collectors. They help us make sense of the world: you can see danger before it arrives, hear a warning shout, feel that something’s too hot to touch, or taste a muffin and know instantly it’s worth eating (within reason).
But here’s the catch: our senses only go so far. We might see a sandstorm rolling toward us, but by the time our eyes register it, it’s already too late to do much. Same with hearing thunder you know the storm is close, but you can’t measure how far or how fast. That’s where remote sensing steps in.
Welcome to Data in the Wild
Welcome back to Data in the Wild, the series where we explore everyday examples of data viz in action. It’s always a pleasure to speak to people who would never forgive a pie chart crime but will still make a 3D bar chart “just to see how it looks.” Today, we’re zooming in (and out) on remote sensing.
So what is it? According to NOAA:
Remote sensing is the science of obtaining information about objects or areas from a distance, typically from aircraft or satellites.
Basically, it’s our five senses… but stretched out with tech. Think of it as super-vision, super-hearing, super-smelling, without the radioactive spider bite.
Here are a few flavours of it:
Uncommom Datasets
Now, why does remote sensing matter in a series about data viz? Because it’s not just about how we present data, it’s also about how we find it. If you only ever look at datasets you can download from the web, you’ll limit your perspective. Remote sensing reminds us that data is everywhere in the skies, under the sea, and bouncing off forests and cities. With the right tools, we can capture it and tell stories our senses alone could never reveal.
So yes, scrape the web, chase down Wikipedia tables, and wrestle with APIs. But don’t forget: with a sensor, a camera, or a laser, you can see the world in entirely new ways.
See you next time when we uncover more data… in the wild.
Our five senses are amazing… but limited.
Enter remote sensing: satellites, planes, and sensors that upgrade how we see the world. From zooming in on Google Earth to mapping the ocean floor sometimes the best datasets aren’t online — they’re captured from above, below, and beyond.
Ancient Andean cultures used quipus knotted strings as a powerful form of data encoding. Long before spreadsheets, these tactile tools tracked census data, resources, and stories. Each knot carried meaning. Portable, durable, and deeply structured, quipus are a forgotten ancestor of modern data viz reminding us that information has always needed form.
This edition of Data in the Wild explores London’s crime dashboard and how data challenges our assumptions about safety. From Croydon to Kensington, it reveals surprising truths and questions how data intersects with emotion. Can facts change feelings? A look at the power and limitations of data in public life.
The post Data in the Wild #13: Remote sensing appeared first on Data Viz Excellence, Everywhere.
2025-09-11 20:53:16
Welcome to episode 2 of season 6 of Explore Explain, a long-form video and podcast series all about data visualisation design.
In this latest episode, I am delighted to welcome Dr Anna Lombardi, Climate Data Visualiser for Copernicus ECMWF, who is based in the UK. We explore the story behind Anna’s extensive data visualisation and design contributions to the ‘The European State of the Climate 2024‘, which offers a detailed overview of climate conditions in Europe and the Arctic region in 2024, based on the close collaboration of 100 scientists and experts across the world.
Here are links to some of the key references or resources mentioned during this episode:
Post-recording, Anna was keen to mention the following:
“I realised I didn’t take the opportunity to thank the rest of the editorial team and communication team here at ECMWF, as well as the external agencies we work with that closely worked with us to put the PDF layout and website in place, and who worked on the social media campaigns, media briefing etc. None of this would have been possible without them.”
She also felt it important to clarify the role of ECMWF:
“Copernicus is the Earth Observation component of the European Union’s space programme. It is organised in six thematic services, managed by entrusted entities on behalf of the European Commission. ECMWF (the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts) is managing the climate change service (which coordinates the ESOTC report) and the atmosphere monitoring service.”
You can watch this episode using the embedded player below or over on the dedicated Explore Explain Youtube channel, where you’ll find all the other video-based episodes and curated playlists.
The post EXPLORE EXPLAIN S6 E2: DR ANNA LOMBARDI appeared first on Data Viz Excellence, Everywhere.
2025-08-13 15:34:44
My July newsletter, that was sent out to subscribers a couple of weeks ago, is now open for all to read.
You can also access this issue, as well as visit the growing catalogue of previous issues, via the Newsletter page.
Please note there will be a another brief interruption to newsletter services! July and August have been crazy so the next newsletter will be published in September to share with you a combined combined, curated collection of my favourite references encountered during July AND August. From then on normal monthly newsletter services will resume.
If you’re not already a subscriber, that gives you plenty of time to address this! To receive this free monthly newsletter straight into your inbox you can sign up here or visit the Newsletter page to get a bit more background information and instructions.
Once again I’m very grateful for the nice messages and feedback I often receive, which gives me the fuel to continue spending time gathering, curating, and publishing these monthly digests.
The post The July 2025 newsletter is now open to all appeared first on Data Viz Excellence, Everywhere.
2025-07-22 17:05:04
The post Explore Explain highlight videos – Season 5 appeared first on Data Viz Excellence, Everywhere.
2025-06-17 20:29:31
The Knotty Origins of Encoding
When I was younger, anytime someone mentioned data, I pictured a stream of 1s and 0s like the Matrix when Neo figures out he’s the One. Later, once I became a bit more data-literate, my brain swapped out binary code for rectangles (bars) or neatly arranged circles (dot plots). These shapes weren’t just pretty pictures; they were systems of encoding. A shared language, built to make information visible and understandable.
But data has existed long before spreadsheets, charts, or even computers. It existed in knots.
Welcome to Data in the Wild
This is the series where we highlight everyday examples of data viz in action, analog, ambient, and often overlooked. I’m always glad to speak to a like-minded audience who doesn’t just ask, “How are you feeling today?” but follows up with, “On a scale of 1 to 10?”
This week, we’re talking about quipus (also spelled khipus), a system of knotted strings used by ancient Andean cultures to store and transmit information. That’s right: data visualization made of yarn.
Untying the Knot
“Quipu” literally means “knot” in Quechua. And while they might look like decorative macramé at first glance, don’t be fooled, these weren’t for show. They were sophisticated data tools used by the Inca Empire (and earlier Andean societies) to record everything from taxes and census data to calendars and genealogy.
Each knot had meaning:
With no written alphabet, the Inca developed a tactile information system, read with the fingers rather than the eyes. Think of it as a wearable spreadsheet made of cotton or camelid fiber, lightweight and durable, perfect for chasquis (Incan messengers) running across rugged mountain terrain with government intel.
Even more mind-blowing? Quipus predate the Inca; some examples go back as far as 2600 BCE. When the Inca conquered new regions, they would send in quipucamayocs (record keepers) to count everything: streams, fields, mines, crops, livestock, and people, even breaking it down by gender. All of that information was tied into a quipu and brought back to Cusco to help govern the newly acquired territory.
A Lesson From History
From a data viz perspective, quipus are a masterclass in encoding. They used structure, hierarchy, materiality, and color, the same principles we use today in dashboard design or information architecture.
So next time you see a knotted friendship bracelet, an art installation made of string, or even a tangled set of earphones, pause for a moment. You might be looking at a distant cousin of one of the world’s oldest data systems.
See you next time when we uncover more data… in the wild.
Our five senses are amazing… but limited.
Enter remote sensing: satellites, planes, and sensors that upgrade how we see the world. From zooming in on Google Earth to mapping the ocean floor sometimes the best datasets aren’t online — they’re captured from above, below, and beyond.
Ancient Andean cultures used quipus knotted strings as a powerful form of data encoding. Long before spreadsheets, these tactile tools tracked census data, resources, and stories. Each knot carried meaning. Portable, durable, and deeply structured, quipus are a forgotten ancestor of modern data viz reminding us that information has always needed form.
This edition of Data in the Wild explores London’s crime dashboard and how data challenges our assumptions about safety. From Croydon to Kensington, it reveals surprising truths and questions how data intersects with emotion. Can facts change feelings? A look at the power and limitations of data in public life.
The post Data in the Wild #12: The Incan Origins of Information Design appeared first on Data Viz Excellence, Everywhere.
2025-06-10 15:43:51
My May newsletter, that was sent out to subscribers a couple of weeks ago, is now open for all to read.
You can also access this issue, as well as visit the growing catalogue of previous issues, via the Newsletter page.
Please note there will be a brief interruption to newsletter services!
Due to a particularly busy period of work, travel, relocating, house selling, and illness I’ve decided to NOT attempt to compile and publish a monthly issue of the newsletter before I go on holiday at the end of June. Instead, I will take a short break and resume posting at the end of July with a combined, curated collection of my favourite references encountered during May AND June.
If you’re not already a subscriber, that gives you plenty of time to address this! To receive this free monthly newsletter straight into your inbox you can sign up here or visit the Newsletter page to get a bit more background information and instructions.
Once again I’m very grateful for the nice messages and feedback I often receive, which gives me the fuel to continue spending time gathering, curating, and publishing these monthly digests. Sorry about the lack of June, but see you in July!
The post The May 2025 newsletter is now open to all appeared first on Data Viz Excellence, Everywhere.
