Browse Books

Reviewer: Peter Spoerri

When this book appeared in my mailbox, I thought at first that there must be some mistake, since it bore no resemblance to the computer science texts I usually review. It is visually dazzling, full of beautifully rendered drawings and maps, each of which is used by the author to illustrate principles of information design. The author describes the book, the third in a series on the visual display of information, as “about pictures of verbs, the representation of mechanism and motion, of process and dynamics, of causes and effects, of explanation and narrative. Since such displays are often used to reach conclusions and make decisions, there is a special concern with the integrity of the content and the design.” For each “visual explanation” in the book, the author attempts to describe the intent of the presenter-artist, how well he or she succeeded, and what improvements could be made in the presentation. The examples range from a map illustrating the hot spots in a cholera epidemic in London in 1854 to a series of more and less successful “explanations” for the Challenger disaster, including photographs of Richard Feynmans famous O-ring demonstration. In many cases, the author not only critiques the original graphic, but also provides his own enhanced version, as in the case of a graphic showing the development of a thunderstorm. The original shows a fully developed storm cloud with no scaling and no points of reference, and Tuftes enhanced version (shown on the books cover) shows time and distance references and miniature snapshots of stages in the storms development. This book is definitely not a textbook, but it is an invaluable reference on how and how not to present information. It is full of useful suggestions on presentation methods. For example, tucked away in the chapter entitled “Explaining Magic” is the authors prescription on how to present a talk: Near the beginning of your presentation, tell the audience: What the problem is Why the problem is important What the solution to the problem is To explain complex ideas or data, use the method of PGP: Particular General Particular No matter what, give everybody in the audience one or more pieces of paper, packed with material related to your presentation. Analyze the details of your presentation; then master those details by practice, practice, practice. Show up early. Something good is bound to happen. Finish early.