Information is Beautiful

A ground breaking book when it was released. On a re-read still enjoyed the multitudinous interesting ways to portray information.
Some of the actual information looks a little suspect to me, but that isn't the point of course.
The book serves as a thought provoking inspiration, showing different and impactful ways of conferring information (although there are some truly awful fails too).

These days we are surrounded by data, every transaction online or in a shop is recorded, processed and analysed. That data is sucked into vast databases that are then used to sell you even more stuff.

But in the hands of McCandless this vast data stream is shown in all its magnificence. He has taken the facts and numbers and made them beautiful, elegant and more importantly understandable. The range of subjects he has covered is vast too, there are maps of the internet, global spending, radiation charts, popular books, DNA, the evolution of computers, drugs, religion, alcohol, coffee, google search terms and many many more. All are shown in the most relevant form to aid clarity.

It is not without its flaws; I'm not completely sure that show more all the data is 100% accurate. Some of the graphical layouts are magnificent, cleverly constructed to portray the maximum amount of information clearly. It doesn't have a huge amount of text, just information. Lots and lots and lots of information. Well worth a look if you are interested in this type of thing, but not up to the standard of of of Tufte's masterpieces. show less

I LOVE this book. As someone who loves random trivia, it was the perfect read. I loved the collection of information and imagery. I was amused with the list of actors that are better connectors than Kevin Bacon. (Who knew that Dennis Hopper was a way better connector?) The Rock Genre-ology chart was an interesting read and made me want to go to iTunes and pandora to explore. The Right vs Left comparison was fascinating. The Internet Virals was like an online walk down memory lane. This book is gorgeous. You will definitely enjoy flipping through it and then exploring more online.

I spent a fascinated few minutes wandering through his website the other day, and so recognized the cover of his book when I saw it in Borders yesterday. I picked it up, paged through it, and found myself drawn in. This is a book of statistics and of art. The charts are as trivial as "Who Really Runs the World? - conspiracy theories" and a chart of caffeine vs. sugar for various drinks, and as profound as "Global Warming - the arguments of the skeptics vs. the arguments of the consensus". I found the charts of movies of 2007, plotted by financial return vs. average critic's score fascinating. Also enjoyed the comparison of political Left vs. political Right. Lots of trivia, lots of fun, and presented in a way that helps the numbers make show more sense. He has obviously learned the lessons taught by Edward Tufte in his books on information presentation, and brought them beautifully to bear on some of the more, and less, pressing questions of the 21st century. show less

Communicating information is so important, and usually so poorly done. This is a brilliant achievement in the battle for brevity and clarity.

I enjoyed the book, but I wish that the infographics had been based on information that was more rigorous.

Here are some of the most extraordinary things you will find out in this book: There is 105 years' worth of oil and 70 years' worth of coal left in the planet at current usage rates; indigotine, or food color E132, has been linked to unpleasant health affects; the opening of carbonated beverages in America releases 389,570 tons of carbon into the atmosphere; the standard colors of happiness in American, Hindu, Native American, and Chinese cultures is yellow, green, white, and red, respectively. David McCandless scours the globe and the Internet to pull together the most salient details on human existence and represents them in beautiful graphs and charts. This book will an absolute delight for anyone looking to get a grasp on current show more knowledge and belief systems. Highly recommended. show less