Post 7: Ask a Question, Search for Data
In the introduction to Dr. Bill Ferster’s book Interactive Visualizations , he provides a number of strategies to help me answer my research questions, and do so in a compelling manner by “letting primary sources of information communicate directly with [the] viewer.” (1) My project most closely reflects Ferster’s observation that “historians use visualization to explain and further explore what people do.” (4) In my case, I am seeking to explain where the citizens of Eatonville carried out the various components of their lives, and how these locations changed over time. My project will allow users to more easily “understand complex and multidimensional relationships, prompting connections that may not have been otherwise apparent.” (9) For example, by layering historic maps over contemporary ones, users will be able to trace connections between past and present in new ways. I do not yet know which platfom I will be using for my project, but I kno...