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How to Lie With Data
SUDS Workshop, December 6th, 2016
David Newbury (@workergnome)
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 1
Who am I?
—Programmer
—Animator
—Data Visualizer
—Teacher
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 2
This is not an ethics class.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 3
Two goals for today:
• Learn to Persuade.
• Become Suspicious.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 4
If you want to
lie...
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 5
...there's an
easy way.
Falsify Data.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 6
We can be more
subtle than that.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 7
Department of
Veterans Affairs
Take this data.
Looks about the same?
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 8
Department of
Veterans Affairs
Let's compare them directly.
Not very dramatic, is it?
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 9
Department of
Veterans Affairs
We can do better than that...
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 10
Department of
Veterans Affairs
Or, we could be
really, really
sneaky effective.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 11
What is a graph?
A visual summary of information
for human interpretation.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 12
Graphs are
visual.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 13
Graphs summarize.
288,987 census blocks, 9.562 million people. 1 picture.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 14
Graphs contain
Information.
• Data - facts or statements
• Information - relationships
• Knowledge - usefulness
• Wisdom - real meaning
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 15
Graphs are
for humans.
That big white triangle
does not exist.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 16
Graphs are
Interpreted.
Graphs are confusing, but...
People trust you.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 17
How to Lie with Statistics (1954)
[A misleading graph] is vastly more effective,
however, because it contains no adjectives or
adverbs to spoil the illusion of objectivity, there's
nothing anyone can pin on you.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 18
Graphs
appear true.
2000 children each year
suffer spinal injuries.
That's 0.0000003% of children.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 19
Words are
powerful.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 20
Misleading Titles
This is actually showing
college attendance.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 21
Too Blatant?
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 22
Loaded Labels
How "substantial" is the drop?
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 23
Leading Captions
Is the decrease
permanent or temporary?
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 24
Images are
more powerful.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 25
Pictographs
Length vs. Count
Humans compare length...
before counting objects.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 26
Pictographs
Length vs. Area
Making something 3x larger...
makes it appear 9x bigger.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 27
Perspective
3D looks like the future...
but it distorts ratios.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 28
Maps and Area
We assign importance to size...
even if the size is irrelevant.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 29
A momentary
pause.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 30
Choosy
Choosers
Choose
Carefully.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 31
Anchoring Comparisons
What will you compare
your selection to?
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 32
Exes vs. Wyes
Comparing two things...
implies they are related.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 33
Axis as Allies
One line is total cost...
The other earnings per year.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 34
Pick your Points
Change is really dramatic...
if you pick the points.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 35
Insufficient Resolution
Even if you don't cheat...
You can hide by sampling.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 36
Choosing
your sample.
The beginning and the end...
Are what people will notice.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 37
Watching
out for axis
manipulation.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 38
Starting from Zero
Things begin at zero...
so you can see change.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 39
Choosing a Zero
Choosing what counts as zero
can be just as important.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 40
Stretching the Truth
Same data...
But one appears more volatile.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 41
Math
is hard.How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 42
Relative Sizes
1 + 1
equals: 2 4!
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 43
Giving Less than 100%
13 + 13 + 19 + 14
equals: 59 100%!
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 44
Everything Always Up.
Adding things to each other...
Always makes them larger.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 45
There are
others ways
to cheat.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 46
Breaking Norms
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 47
Hiding Expert Information
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 48
Conclusions
Go Here.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 49
Your job is to direct attention.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 50
Good visualizations have a point.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 51
There's a fine line between
storytelling and lying.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 52
My favorite example
3 versions of the same chart...
totally different stories.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 53
How To Not Lie:
1). The visuals should match the numbers.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 54
How To Not Lie:
2). Labels should be honest and accurate.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 55
How To Not Lie:
3). Full context should be provided.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 56
How To Not Lie:
4). Expert information should be conveyed.
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 57
Thank you.
Source: http://xkcd.com/688/
How to Lie with Data: David Newbury (@workergnome) 58

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How to Lie with Data