The Foreign Service Journal, March 2012

12 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / M A R C H 2 0 1 2 off the flow of information altogether. We can head off such problems by filtering and managing the flow of in- formation to make it meaningful, so we can apply it to making sounder de- cisions and achieving better outcomes. In particular, graphic and video images can make ideas more engaging and persuasive than text or data alone. Open Data: From Graphs to Platforms Consider the figure French engi- neer Charles Joseph Minard drew for his study of Napoleon’s 1812-1813 campaign in Russia (see below). Visu- alization pioneer Edward Tufte has called this diagram, which shows the original size of Napoleon’s army in beige and its size during the retreat from Moscow in black, perhaps the most effective visual diagram ever constructed. Combining geography, force size and temperature (on the separate scale below the map), it ex- plains in a single picture the disaster that was the French campaign to in- vade Russia. News publications have been using catchy info graphics for just that pur- pose for years now. Their widespread availability helps us see meaning we might otherwise miss in data on sports, business, crime and other topics. While seeing data represented as images can be helpful, such images — like prose — often incorporate the in- terests or biases of those creating them. Potentially more powerful is the ability to interact with and manip- ulate visual representations of data. Such tools could empower decision- makers to pull together data reflecting diverse phenomena and to see com- plex relationships between and among geography, finance, politics and other factors. Platforms could also bring to- gether multiple applications or sources into a single interface or “mash-up.” Platforms that support data inter- action encourage users to explore and use the data to extract their own meaning or conclusions. The OECD Better Life Initiative is just such a platform at a multilateral level, with information about countries that are members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and De- velopment (see p. 13). This initiative contributes to numerous U.S. foreign policy goals, from promoting more S P E A K I N G O U T Figure depicting the size of the French Army before and after Napoleon’s Moscow campaign, 1812-1813. Platforms that support data interaction encourage users to explore and use the data to extract their own meaning or conclusions.