Today, we are subjected to vast amounts of data. Nowhere is that truer than on the web. So, it is absolutely imperative that, for that fleeting moment while we have our viewer's attention, we present in an informative, appealing and interactive way. The emerging field known as data visualization aims to provide both the software tools and best practices to achieve those goals.On the lighter side, taking the tried-and-trusted "Six Degrees..." concept, the Oracle of Bacon combines an extremely simple user-interface with the invitation to find two people in Hollywood who are more than 3 "degrees" apart. It is addictive and the simplicity of the website masks the complex algorithms based on the concept of breadth-first search (BFS) and the volume of data, courtesy of IMDB.
Top-notch data visualization is equally effective in presenting serious and sobering information. The University of Victoria, Canada website includes an interactive graphic presentation of catastrophic earthquakes. A quick study of this excellent page helped to identify my own misconceptions (killer earthquakes were relatively equally spread throughout the continents and they occurred with increasing frequency as the decades passed).
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