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BusinessTech AcademyBusinessTech AcademyData Dive

The ladder

You read the chart.
Then you read what it left out.

Four levels, 22 dives, every chart drawn from public data you can go and check. Each level asks a new question of a chart, and each one builds on the last.

Dive in → 1.12,508 earthquakes. Can you spot the big ones?

explorer → investigator → analyst → scientist → memberThe four levels carry you to scientist. The last step is not another dive: it is a finding of your own, characterised and published, that somebody else can check.

01Read a chartlevel 1 · explorer02Ask who countedlevel 2 · investigator03Compare and chooselevel 3 · analyst04Find what's missinglevel 4 · scientist
22 dives · four levels
1

level 1 of 4 · explorer

Read a chart

What this level is aboutWhat does this chart show, and what does it leave out?

1.12,508 earthquakes. Can you spot the big ones?The answer is in the file. Finding it is another story.the table · the histogram · civic1.2Can a chart make a small difference look huge?Same numbers, two charts, two very different stories.the bar · civic1.3Is 78 bad-air days a lot?A number means nothing until you compare it to something.the number · the bar · civic1.4What is the most common tree on LA streets?The city keeps a list of every spot on its streets where a tree grows, or could.the picture graph · the bar · civic1.5Is half of 311 really about old couches?A donut chart answers one question well. Try it on a second one.the donut · the bar · civic1.MMake one: build the chart yourselfThe last step is making a chart in the pool, not reading one. Coming soon.

no dive at this level matches

2

level 2 of 4 · investigator

Ask who counted

What this level is aboutEvery number was counted by someone or something. Who counted, and how?

2.1Which part of New York has the most rats?The city has numbers. The question is what they count.the bar · the line · civic2.2Can the city check its own rat numbers?The city counts rat calls, and it also sends inspectors. Do the two agree?the bar · the scatter · civic2.3Do rats take the weekend off?Some patterns have a reason. Some are just luck. How can you tell?the bar · civic2.4Did all of LA stop reporting problems for a day?One strange Saturday, and what really happened.the histogram · the line · the dotplot · civic2.5Can one machine on one mountain be trusted?Some data jumps around. Some barely wobbles. The difference tells you something.the line · civic2.6What does a school job actually pay?Two true answers can be very far apart.the box plot · the bar · civic2.MMake one: build the chart yourselfThe last step is making a chart in the pool, not reading one. Coming soon.

no dive at this level matches

3

level 3 of 4 · analyst

Compare and choose

What this level is aboutThe same data can tell different stories. How you slice it changes the answer.

3.1Did global warming stop in 1998?One temperature record, and a lot of ways to slice it.the line · the dotplot · earth and space3.2Was September a normal month for LA's 311?A monthly report says yes. You might know better.the bar · the box plot · civic3.3Does carbon dioxide help us find planets?Two things can rise together without one causing the other.the scatter · earth and space3.4Where do LA's 311 requests really cluster?A map made of six-sided tiles. Change their size and see what happens.the hexagonal binning map · the dot density map · civic3.5Does most of California breathe bad air?A shaded map of the state looks alarming. Look closer.the choropleth map · the bar · civic3.6Which students are struggling most?Two adults, two different answers. Can they both be right?parallel coordinates · civic3.7Does a more expensive college pay off?Two adults give you opposite advice. The data says something neither expected.the scatter · civic3.MMake one: build the chart yourselfThe last step is making a chart in the pool, not reading one. Coming soon.

no dive at this level matches

4

level 4 of 4 · scientist

Find what's missing

What this level is aboutSometimes the most important part of the data is the part that is not there.

4.1Does a blank spot on a map mean clean air?A report calls six counties clean. Find out why they look that way.the choropleth map · the bar · earth and space4.2Is every part of Earth warming?The planet's average is going up. Does every region agree?small multiples · the line · earth and space4.3Are earthquakes in Southern California slowing down?A few quiet years in a row. Is that a trend, or luck?is this real, or noise? · the bar · the line · earth and space4.4Are planets like Earth rare?We have found thousands of planets and none like Earth. What does that tell us?the scatter · the scatterplot matrix · earth and space4.MMake one: build the chart yourselfThe last step is making a chart in the pool, not reading one. Coming soon.

no dive at this level matches

Project one. Ask the three questions.

Dive in → 1.1 · 2,508 earthquakes. Can you spot the big ones?