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1. Compare the "displays of evidence" on pages 29 and 30: both concern the mysterious deaths from cholera in London 1854. Why is the map on page 30 better for doing something about this crisis than the charts on 29?
2. Compare the charts on the top of pg. 41 (the acutal documents presented by engineers from Morton Thiokol to NASA administrators) with the chart on 45 that Tufte prepared from available data. Both charts have the same purpose: to convince NASA administrators that a cold weather launch of the shuttle could be catastrophic. Why is the chart on 41 ineffective and the chart on 45 persuasive?
3. On pgs. 46-49, Tufte analyzes the “little rocket” charts that Morton Thiokol prepared for the presidential commission investigating the Challenger, and calls them “ludicrous and corrupt,” even after Tufte himself has tried to revise them. Why and how do these graphics conceal what they should be revealing?
4. Tufte's most recent book was a broadside attack on Powerpoint (when used for presenting complex subjects, such as those with intricate cause-and-effect relationships).
Similarly, on page 47, Tufte criticizes Morton Thiokol for the “slide show” style of graphic representation on the "dreaded overhead projector" before the presidential commission (47). Why is slide-show thinking less effective than single-image thinking for revealing cause-and-effect relationships?
5. On pg. 53, Tufte gives us six principles for creating effective designs for effective decision making.
Name two of the principles and give an example of someone not following each principle in the chapter (with page #)
Your first choice of principle, example and page number:
Your second choice of principle, example and page number:
All course materials by Craig Stroupe unless noted otherwise. See my home page.
