Hands On Visualizing
We made it to the end of the semester. Hooray! The students have been working hard, and it’s time to show off what we’ve been up to.
Rose Porta explains our latest focus and gives us a recap of the semester as a whole.
For the past few weeks, we have been working in collaboration with the Center for Design and Fabrication (CDF) on a data physicalization project. The goal of the project was to represent the changes in the demographic composition of the Smith College student body between 1986 and 2018 in a tactile way so that it is accessible to individuals who are blind or visually impaired. Our starting point was a digital visualization representing this data (each person chose a slightly different visualization as a starting point). Then we each created an individual prototype for a tactile version using the materials in our kits from the Design Thinking Initiative including paper, various fabrics, string, sewing materials, beads, clay, pipe cleaners, wire, and more. Next, we shared our prototypes with a small group, gave each other feedback, and discussed the similarities between our designs and which specific features stood out to us from the group of designs. Based on this feedback, we each created a new rapid prototype incorporating the aspects that stood out from the group of designs. We spent much less time on this second prototype than the first one.
From our new prototypes, we then chose one to develop further in collaboration with Eric and Dale from the CDF. From there, we worked out the details as a group and met with Eric and Dale to convey our vision. They then used materials in the CDF including 3D printing and laser cutting to translate our prototypes into proportional final products. You can see the progression of these steps through the process as you scroll through the slide deck.
This project was very growth promoting because it exposed me to the process of starting with rapid prototyping, iterating, and then finally translating to a final product. I also learned about the concepts of user-centered design and data accessibility. The process revealed to me how complex it is to convey the nuances of data to individuals who are blind or visually impaired, and yet the extremely creative designs that we came up with as a class demonstrate that it is possible. It is so important that everyone has access to the data that interests them, and if we actually focus our attention on making data more accessible, so many more people can have access to it.
Over the course of the semester, we explored data communication in a variety of contexts with an ongoing focus on accessibility. See our favorite products here. We explored data communication both from the perspective of the user, noticing which aspects of a visualization are most effective, and as a creator, focusing on how we could most clearly convey the story or message our data was telling. We explored a variety of tools for data communication including Data Wrapper, hand-drawing in our Dear Data Projects, 3D methods including crafting materials and more advanced methods like 3D printing, and data sonification. We got to meld creative art and storytelling with math and science to convey complex and meaningful messages in a clear, appealing, and accessible way. This class definitely challenged me to think in new ways and inspired me to continue my exploration of data accessibility and data communication!