Living in Data: A Citizen's Guide to a Better Information Future

Jer Thorp

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Language: English

Published by Farrar, Straus & Giroux Inc, 2021

0374189900 / 9780374189907

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Seller: World of Books Inc, Montgomery, IL, U.S.A.World of Books Inc

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In the fall of 2009, the data artist Jer Thorp wrote a pair of algorithms to inscribe names on the 9/11 Memorial in Manhattan. The project involved designing a layout that allowed for "meaningful adjacencies"-family members, business partners, coworkers-to be etched into the bronze in close proximity. Thorp presented his results in competition against another team, a group of financial analysts who had also been working on the problem. The analysts were confident they'd found the most highly optimized solution-a maximum of about 93 percent of the adjacencies could be satisfied-when Thorp, a long-haired artist working on an old broken laptop, presented his layout: it was 99.99 percent solved. The analysts, it turned out, had looked at the data but not at how the data was to be represented. But Thorp considered each name as a unique unit in a real system. He'd solved a data problem by honoring the people from whom the data came, as well as the world in which that data would live. The memorial project represents Thorp's approach to data as a rich medium for personal and community growth. This human-centered approach has defined his work, from The New York Times to the Museum of Modern Art to the Library of Congress; from a submarine at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico to a boat in the middle of Africa's Okavango Delta; from Manchester's town hall to an abandoned school in St. Louis's north side. In Living in Data, Thorp proves that thinking about data in a human context makes us better problem solvers and builds a healthier relationship between us and our data-one that puts our well-being front and center-and that there is a path forward beyond the extractive, impersonal nature of the "big data" era.…

Seller Inventory # CIN0374189900VG

Title
Living in Data: A Citizen's Guide to a Better Information Future
Author
Jer Thorp
Publisher
Farrar, Straus & Giroux Inc
Publication year
2021
Condition
Very Good
Binding
Hardback
Language
English
ISBN 10
0374189900
ISBN 13
9780374189907

World of Books Inc

Montgomery, IL, U.S.A.

4-star seller

AbeBooks seller since March 23, 2026

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Founded in 2002, World of Books is a leading online destination for buying and selling both preloved and new books, committed to making sustainable reading accessible to all. With a mission to help people read more and waste less, World of Books offers a huge range of affordable, high-quality books — giving both new and preloved titles a second life. The company also operates World of Books – Sell Your Books, an easy-to-use platform that allows customers to trade in unwanted books for cash, helping to keep books in circulation while promoting sustainability. As a Certified B Corp, World of Books is driven by a vision to become the world’s largest and most sustainable dedicated online bookstore. The company measures its success through the positive environmental impact it creates, the value it provides to customers, and its ability to operate profitably while supporting its sustainable mission …

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