Data Visualization with Maps

One of the best ways to show relationships in data is also one of the oldest: maps. There are lots of cool, fun visualizations out there like topic maps and tag clouds, but sometimes they emphasize form over function (and usability). Maps can be a great choice, even if your data is not directly geographical.

Here’s one example: a map of the United States showing where people use the terms “soda,” “pop,” or “coke.”

You might think this one was a pretty obvious choice, but you could definitely imagine someone using a pie chart to show the total percentages instead, throwing out a ton of information in the process.

Here’s one that’s a little more clever: a map of the United States, which each state labeled by a country with the same GDP. from strange maps.

states-gdp.png

Now, you could argue with the precision of presentation since most people don’t know the exact GDP of Algeria off the top of their heads. But show them a table of figures and ten minutes later they still won’t know. This is a much more interesting and memorable presentation of the data.

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