Living in Data A Citizen’s Guide to a Better Information Future
Living in Data: A Citizen’s Guide to a Better Information Future by Jer Thorp, published by Picador on August 30, 2022, explores the evolving significance of data in contemporary society. This 320-page book delves into the complexities of how data is intertwined with our lives, revealing the various associations and implications that have emerged over decades. Thorp analyzes the term “data” through a comprehensive review of 10,325 New York Times stories, highlighting its connections to themes such as misinformation, ethics, and social dynamics.
Readers will find a rich narrative that intertwines personal anecdotes with broader societal observations, illustrating the multifaceted nature of data. Thorp emphasizes the importance of becoming active participants in the data landscape rather than passive consumers. Through engaging stories and original illustrations, the book encourages a deeper understanding of data’s role in our lives and advocates for a more equitable and democratic approach to its use. Living in Data invites readers to rethink their relationship with information and consider how they can contribute to a more informed future.
Official synopsis Publisher
Jer Thorp’s analysis of the word “data” in 10,325 New York Times stories written between 1984 and 2018 shows a distinct trend: among the words most closely associated with “data,” we find not only its classic companions “information” and “digital,” but also a variety of new neighbors—from “scandal” and “misinformation” to “ethics,” “friends,” and “play.”
To live in data in the twenty-first century is to be incessantly extracted from, classified and categorized, statistic-ified, sold, and surveilled. Data—our data—is mined and processed for profit, power, and political gain. In Living in Data, Thorp asks a crucial question for our time: How do we stop passively inhabiting data, and instead become active citizens of it?
Threading a data story through hippo attacks, glaciers, and school gymnasiums, around colossal rice piles, and over active minefields, Jer Thorp reminds us that the future of data is still wide open, that there are ways to transcend facts and figures to engage more viscerally with data, and that there are always new stories to be told about how data can be used.
Punctuated with Thorp’s original and informative illustrations, Living in Data not only redefines what data is, but also reimagines who gets to speak its language and how to use its power to create a more just and democratic future. Timely and inspiring, Living in Data gives us a much-needed path forward.
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