U.S. Pet Industry Expenditures
Pets are a very important part of a lot of American families. They provide fun, comfort, cuteness, and in some cases, protection. People will go to many lengths to take good care of their pets.
As most people are aware, for the past couple of years, the economy has not been good. Prices are rising and falling, people are losing their jobs, and spending less money. However, there are a few things that have not been affected by the economy. One of those things is the amount of money that people spend on their pets. Since 1994, the billions of dollars that American families spend on...
Decreasing Track Times
I decided to use my blog topic as inspiration for the infographic that I created for this project. As a runner on the UMW track team, I am racing at various track meets every weekend with a goal of decreasing my time in my events as the season progresses. I wanted to create a graphic that would display the trend that my running events are following, while also expressing just how much running I am doing all together in this year's spring track season.
Although I haven't raced the same events at every meet, and although there are still some meets left to go, I wanted to display the...
Exploring State Debt Since 2008
Since the financial and real estate bubble burst in late 2008 the amount of state debt has risen considerably. As a result citizens across the country are feeling the pinch as states tighten their budget, thereby cutting back on social services and improvements to infrastructure. What I was interested in seeing was if there was a correlation between states with higher debt and the political parties that run them. I chose to display this through an area cartogram. An area cartogram is a type of chloropleth map where the area (in this case the state’s area) of the polygon is distorted no to...
Kemba
For this project I did an information image about Kemba Walker the point guard for the Connecticut Huskies. This info image describes why I feel he is the best player in college basketball, and I am trying to convince you of the same. I wanted to keep this image simple and clear so you the reader could understand the information provided the quickest and easiest way. With just the most important bullet points provided to the reader it provides clarity and simplicity. I could not decide if I wanted to have Kemba in the background or just as a side image. I finally decided on him in the...
Same-Gender Couple Adoption
This project is a visual presentation of data that supports allowing full joint adoption by same-gender couples in more U.S. states. This type of adoption is currently only allowed in 12 states, and it is my belief that it should be allowed in more states in order to help reduce the number of kids waiting to be adopted. Unfortunately, a majority of states do not allow same-gender couples to participate in full joint adoption, either through laws forbidding it or by leaving individual cases up to a judge. The alternative - one parent in the couple adopting the child - is much less...
Thyroid Madness? You're Not Alone
I started off wanting to make a fun self-diagnosis map, but then I reread the instructions and realized I had to use numerical data. So I have two thyroid infographics for you.
1. Thyroid problems can be very tricky to treat, even for endocrinologists, so I thought it would be useful to make a map for the struggling, newly diagnosed hypothyroid patient. Start at the top, with the doctor who tells you that your TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) and/or thyroid levels are normal and that you’re crazy for thinking you’re still unwell, don’t panic(!), and proceed on down the map until...
Don't Go Bananas Over Radiation
In light of current events, the topic of radiation and its consequences is in the media spotlight. There is a plethora of information available on the radiation levels we are likely to encounter on a regular basis, as well as sources of radiation that are unlikely to affect the greater population. This data can become a source of fear-mongering among hypochondriacs and plebeians alike, which is why I created this infographic to put this esoteric radiation data into an easily digestible format and hopefully put radiation into perspective. The basis of the analysis of radiation levels...
Camp Stats
The infograph that I created gives statistics on what types of camps are available as well as the activities that they provide. I attempted to make a visual representation of the information by using "tents" to represent camps and colored dots to represent the activities that they might provide. There are two very important things to consider. Firstly, I am terrible at drawing, especially on the computer. Secondly, I am often hopeless at creating charts. I would consider using Prezi a way to manage my computer ineptitude and combine my love of camp and PowerPoint. After figuring out that I...
Turkey Donations
At the end of last semester, 964 UMW students each used 10 meals of their meal plans to donate a turkey to a local food bank. The large pyramid of turkeys shows both the number of turkeys that were donated and the number of meals that were put toward this cause by students. This goes to show that many students do not use up all of their meals for the semester but they are willing to put them toward a good cause, such as the food bank.
UMW Tuition Increase
Looking at the proposed tuition increase for UMW, and comparing it to the increases recently implemented by other random schools around the country.