Visualizations: FlowingData's Best of 2013

(See also the tag, Visualization.) 

Year-end is a great time for best-ofs and trends for the coming year. Here, Nathan Yau, the principal of FlowingData -- probably the best site for visualization; "explores how statisticians, designers, data scientists, and others use analysis, visualization, and exploration to understand data and ourselves" (from About) -- picks his favorites of 2013. 

Data and visualization year in review, 2013

DECEMBER 16, 2013 

Visualization continues to mature and focus more on the data first than on novel designs and size. People improved on existing forms and got better at analysis. Readerships seemed to be more ready and eager to explore more data at a time. Fewer spam graphics landed in my inbox.

So all in all, 2013 was a pretty good year for data and visualization. Let's have a look back.

There were several themes throughout the year, but the most important was the strengthened connection between data and reality. During some phases, when so much news was based on speculation and opinion, data was a way to form our own opinions and to view a subject more objectively. But not in that cold, robotic sort of way and more in the warm, human-like way.

Article continues at link above. 

Here are three of my favorites; click on images to go to sources. 

". . . not long after the shootings in Newtown, Periscopic shed light on U.S. gun deaths with an interactive animation. We saw plenty of charts that showed annual aggregates, but Periscopic brought the individual lives and what was lost back into the picture."

"I gravitate towards the more data-centric features, so I really liked the dissection of movie trailers by Shan Carter, Amanda Cox, and Mike Bostock." [The New York Times consistently has good visualizations.\

"The two most popular posts this year on FlowingData speak highly about America's interests, I think. The first looked at pizza chains across the country. The second looked at porn searches by state. Go America!"