Think about the last time you filled out a hand-written survey. Not an online form where you quickly click the Yes/No or Agree/Disagree radio buttons and then ‘Submit,’ but a true, in-person survey where you write your answers on a…
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Some of my data interests are spurred by my work at the Urban Institute, others by things I’m personally interested in, like sports or politics. But sometimes, my kids inspire my work. My son inspired my exploration of timing of…
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I’m sure you’ve heard it said that a graph needs to be “immediately recognizable” or “understood at the snap of your fingers.” After all, “a graph is worth a thousand words,” right? But is this assumption true? Can you simply…
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Late last year, I presented my work on the Urban Institute’s Do No Harm project to analysts at a state department of health. (I’ve changed specific numbers in this post and am not naming the state or hospitals to keep the information…
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“Where should I place the labels on my graph?” It’s question that comes up in many data visualization discussions. Although the decision about where to place your labels is largely an aesthetic preference, I do think there is an objective…
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The fight to recognize and respect the dignity and rights of LGBTQIA+ people has raised the visibility of multiple dimensions of gender and sexual orientation, expanding conception of these identities beyond the binary definitions of man or woman, straight or…
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In today’s Data at Urban blog post, I detail my ongoing Data Physicalization at Urban (what I call “DPAU”) project with my colleagues at the Urban Institute. This page provides updated descriptions and photos from the weekly project series. If…
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At last month’s Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management (APPAM) annual meeting in Atlanta, GA, I teamed up with four others to offer a four-hour workshop on effective research communication skills. Our goal is to help those working and…
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One of the presentation techniques I totally and vehemently oppose is the “Thank You” and “Questions?” ending slides. They are a hugely wasted opportunity and in this post, I’m going to show you a better way to end your presentation….
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In-person conferences are definitely back. I attended the Government & Public Sector R Conference at Georgetown last week and was in Indianapolis for a total of 20 hours last Friday-Saturday for the American Evaluation Association (AEA) annual meetings. It’s what I saw…
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