xkcd: Pairwise matrix of what to do in an emergency

xkcd has an informative reference for what do in case of mountain lion encounter, lightning, fire alarm, and bleeding. Very informative.

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xkcd: Real estate analysis

xkcd provides the analysis we all need. I can’t believe Jupiter scored so low.

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xkcd on optimal bowling metrics

xkcd charted optimal bowling in terms of aim, speed, spin, and weight. This is very important.

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Historical data

Randall Munroe provides another fine observation through xkcd.

I often wonder what our data and charts will look like a century or two from now. Will the conventions and aesthetics look silly and amateur or classic and vintage? Will what seems like a lot of detailed data now seem spotty and useless, or will we look back in disbelief that companies were allowed to track our activities? Will AI have taken over human cognition and make these questions obsolete, because we’re in a suspended dream state, our bodies used as energy to power super computers, unsure of what is real and what is simulated? Important questions.

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xkcd: Unknowable truth

xkcd makes Statistics so fulfilling. George E. P. Box comes to mind.

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Painbow color scale

xkcd poked fun at the sometimes questionable color choices of researchers.

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xkcd: Base Rate

xkcd points out the importance of considering the baseline when making comparisons:

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Grandpa Chad distribution

xkcd crossed a rough age distribution of people becoming grandparents with people named “Chad” and “Jason” to highlight the dawn of a new era. The time is now.

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xkcd-style charts in JavaScript

For xkcd fans, here’s a JavaScript library by Tim Qian that lets you style your charts like xkcd.

There’s something about sketchy, comic-style charts that makes the data feel more approachable. Maybe just because it’s different or looks more casual? I mean, I would use the style sparingly and maybe not in your next business meeting, but it’s kind of fun to mess with. You can also do this in R and Python of course.

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Randall Munroe of xkcd on Data Stories

Randall Munroe of xkcd was on the Data Stories podcast. He talks about his work, his process, and communicating complex ideas to a wide audience. It’s amazing how much of his process overlaps with visualizing data.

Worth the full listen.

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