29 March, 2010

VIS COM | F + S

I chose this infograph based on on of my iterations for my "United States Health Expenditures" graph. This infograph and my infograph both have a big image, and the breakdown of the statistic below. They both give meaning and depth to the main topic, and inform the viewer on the detail.
I chose this infograph because it relates to healthcare, which is the main topic I have been focusing on for my graphs. This also uses a map to show location and inform the viewer on where these statistics are taking place. I also have an iteration that is using a map to show the top deaths throughout the United States.

25 March, 2010

IMAGE MAKING | Seven deadly sins; Very late posting of final booklet

Title page
Pages 1 & 2; introduction and seven deadly sins definitions
Gluttony and Lust
Envy and Wrath
Sloth and Pride
Greed and Colophon





Sorry about the late post ;)

21 March, 2010

VIS COM | Infographic research

 IV FLUID BAG:
1-6) “Health Care Statistics in the United States.” 2010. http://www.healthpaconline.net/health-care-statistics-... (accessed Mar. 20, 2010).
    Health Care Statistics in the United States
  • The United States is the only wealthy, industrialized nation that does not have a universal health care system. Source: Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences
  • In 2006, the percentage of Americans without health insurance was 15.8%, or approximately 47 million uninsured people. Source: US Census Bureau
  • Among the 84.2% with health insurance in 2006, coverage was provided through an employer 59.7%, purchased individually 9.1%, and 27.0% was government funded (Medicare, Medicaid, Military). (There is some overlap in coverage figures.) Source: US Census Bureau
  • The primary reason given for lack of health insurance coverage in 2005 was cost (more than 50%), lost job or a change in employment (24%), Medicaid benefits stopped (10%), ineligibility for family insurance coverage due to age or leaving school (8%). Source: National Center for Health Statistics
  • More than 40 million adults stated that they needed but did not receive one or more of these health services (medical care, prescription medicines, mental health care, dental care, or eyeglasses) in 2005 because they could not afford it. Source: National Center for Health Statistics
  • Medicaid, which accounted for 12.9% of health care coverage in 2006, is a health insurance program jointly funded by the federal and state governments to provide health care for qualifying low-income individuals. Source: US Census Bureau
  • Medicare, a federally funded health insurance program that covers the health care of most individuals 65 years of age and over and disabled persons, accounted for 13.6% of health care coverage in 2006. Source: US Census Bureau
SYRINGE: 
1-6) Should I get the new H1N1 vaccine.” 2009. http://www.thevaccination.com/article/2/Should-I-get-t... (accessed Mar. 20, 2010).
    help the reader to make an informed decision about the risks and benefits of getting vaccinated.


  • The CDC lists 5 group of people who should get the H1N1 vaccine:
    1) Pregnant women
    2) Caregivers and people who come into contact with children younger than 6 months of age
    3) Everyone between 6 months and 24 years old
    4) People between 25 and 64 years old who have existing medical conditions
    5) Health care and emergency medical services personnel
  • The World Health Organization claims that 30-50% of people infected with influenza have mild or no symptoms at all. On the other hand, serious health complications, including death, have been occurring in 1% of swine flu patients. If you fall into one of the 5 groups advised by the CDC, you should probably give stronger consideration to getting vaccinated. But everyone's situation is different. 
  •  The swine flu has claimed more than 5,000 lives as of early October, but the vaccine itself is not without risk.
STETHOSCOPE:
1-3) “World Life Expectancy.” n.d. http://www.worldlifeexpectancy.com/ (accessed Mar. 20, 2010).
    life expectancy throughout the world
  • cause of death
  • life expectancy throughout the world, comparing conutries
4-6) “Fit Buff.” 2008. http://www.fitbuff.com/normal-resting-heart-rate/ (accessed Mar. 20, 2010).
    Stats on your heart
  • average resting heartbeat
  • average active heartbeat
  • heartbeats of different ages

LAMP :
1-3) “Hospitals Due for Energy Efficiency Overhaul.” 07 July 2009. http://www.environmentalleader.com/2009/07/27/hospital... (accessed Mar. 20, 2010).
    Hospitals and health care facilities are primed for a revolution in energy efficiency, achieved through changes as far-ranging as lighting, cooling towers, employee work flow and even on-site solar and wind.
  • Hospitals use about 2.5 times the amount of energy as a similar-sized commercial building, because they are open 24 hours a day and have extra commitments on air filtration and circulation, air cooling and waste management, experts say. 
  • "30-30-30 goal" That means increasing energy efficiency 30 percent, achieving a 30 percent reduction in energy consumption and deriving 30 percent of energy from renewables.
  • As of earlier this year, Gundersen Lutheran had reduced energy consumption by 10 percent, which amounts to $409,000 in annualized savings, said Jerry Arndt, Senior Vice President of Business Services.
4-6) “Environmental Leader.” 21 Aug. 2009. http://www.environmentalleader.com/2009/08/21/100m-lig... (accessed Mar. 20, 2010).
    $100M Lighting Retrofits Could Save $350M at Hospitals
  • The company estimates that based on a reduction of 10 lbs of CO2 emissions for $1 saved in electricity, the environmental benefit of saving $350 million in electric costs is equal to 3.5 billion lbs of greenhouse gases.
  • Hospitals use about 2.5 times the amount of energy as a similar-sized commercial building.
  • Because hospitals typically operate 24 hours per day every day, about 50 percent or more of their energy consumption comes from lighting as compared with other commercial buildings, according to LED Saving Solutions.
SCALPEL: 
1-3) Chapman, James. “Mail Online.” 29 Jan. 2007. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-432099/Opera... (accessed Mar. 21, 2010).
    Operations cut for lack of sterile equipment
  • Nationally 41 percent more operations are being lost because dirty surgical instruments, or the wrong ones, are being sent to theatres.
  •  In 2005/6 some 1,765 operations were cancelled because no sterile instruments were available at the 58 Health Service trusts who responded to requests for information.
  • A total of 161,000 operations were abandoned last year. In 2002, the figure was only 130,000.
4-5) “College Grad.” 2010. http://www.collegegrad.com/careers/proft82.shtml (accessed Mar. 21, 2010).
    Physicians and Surgeon: Career, Salary and Education Information

  • Surgeons in general practice with over one year in specialty saw median earnings of $282,504 in 2005. A doctor with over a year experience in family practice earns $156,010 on average. Anesthesiologists earn some of the highest salaries in the profession; those with over a year in specialty earn an average $321,686 yearly.
  • More than one-third of all full-time physicians worked 60 hours or more a week in 2006. Many choose to work these long hours in small private offices or clinics, assisted by a staff of nurses and administrative personnel.
 6) “About.” 2009. http://healthcareers.about.com/od/physiciancareers/p/s... (accessed Mar. 21, 2010).
    Overview of Surgeons’ Careers and Surgery Jobs
  • Most surgeons work 50-60 hours weekly, including on-call time, administrative duties, and other responsibilities. 
  • Usually surgeons will have about 3 days blocked off for surgery and 2 days devoted to office hours for follow-up appointments or pre-operative consultations.
  • The case load can vary, based on the type and complexity of surgeries performed, and can be anywhere from 150 per year up to 500 or more. The average is about 300-400 surgeries annually. 
CLIPBOARD:
1) BERNSTEIN, HARRY. “Prescription for Pharmacist Shortage.” Los Angeles Times (1990): 1-3. http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/59973247.ht... (accessed Mar. 20, 2010).
    shortage of pharmacists, drugstores have raised their salaries

2) Rite Aid Reports Sales Increase for February. Business. http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-2266... (accessed Mar. 20, 2010).
    Pharmacy same store sales were up 4.9 percent, while front-end same store sales were up 0.4 percent

3) “A PRESCRIPTION FOR ERROR.” Wichita Eagle (2000): http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product... (accessed Mar. 20, 2010).
    PRESCRIPTION DRUG USE SOARS, PHARMACISTS FACE MORE PRESSURE AND A GREATER RISK OF MAKING MISTAKES THAT HARM PATIENTS

4) “Prescription error statistics.” 2003. http://www.1personalinjurylawyers.com/prescription-err... (20 Mar. 2010).
    According to the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy, more than 7,000 deaths occur every year as a result of prescription errors

5) Fraser, Jessica. “Statistics prove prescription drugs are 16,400% more deadly than terrorists.” Natural News. 05 July 2005. http://www.naturalnews.com/009278.html (accessed Mar. 20, 2010).
    prescription drugs in this country are at least 16,400 percent deadlier than terrorism

6)  Jaret, Peter. “Special Report: Avoiding Pharmacy Errors.” n.d. http://www.ahealthyme.com/topic/rxtrouble (15 Jan. 2009).
    When pharmacists are asked to work long hours under grueling pressure, mistakes happen. And although many errors are minor, some of them can be extremely grave

VIS COM | Icons after color critque

After the crit last week I decided it was best to do away with two of my color choices:

I deleted the the colors selected by the black squares. Then decided to use the existing colors on the entire icon set. I believe this allows them to all be cohesive, but still interesting.

Final set:

11 March, 2010

VIS COM | PROBLEM!!!

We are currently revising and adding our final colors to our entire icon set. Well, I have ran into a problem. I believe all of my icons are cohesive when it comes to colors, except one. My stethoscope.
It is most definitely the odd man out. I hadn't thought about where my fill was going to go when I got to my final icon coloring.

 As you can see my stethoscope's color fill is very small and does not work well with my other icons. Eeep!
I was thinking about filling the actual stethoscope but then it would still stand out because my other icons have solid white wraps.
I am going to have to do some iterating, so more to come!

Any help?

Okay, here are a few iterations (I am leaning towards the last one):

10 March, 2010

IMAGE MAKING | Sins book layout

I have been working on my cover page and my inside layout for my Seven Deadly Sins project. I wanted to incorporate the colors of my photos on my booklet cover and my second and third pages.
I first used an image from my photo collection, but then I realized we were not to use a images on the front cover. But anyways this is what I had initially had:
I had wanted to use the feet on the front cover to allude to the fact the my book was using only the feet (from the knee and down) to portray the seven deadly sins.
But after changing my cover and inside pages, I am much more pleased with them, and believe it is much more powerful to have the audience not knowing exactly what to expect. So yeah, expect the unexpected:
Cover
Second page, explaining what the seven deadly sins are
Third page, listing the seven sins and briefly what they are

I have not finished my colophon. But it will look very similar to the examples above. It will have the salmon colored bar with the text matching the background, creating a bleed.

05 March, 2010

VIS COM | Color icons, updated swatches

After having out first crit using the colors within the icons, we of course had changes to make. I realized I need to do a lot of color correcting with my print outs and really think about the color choices to further push the icons. Being about an operation, I need to stick with colors that give a clean and bright feeling, like the feel you get in a hospital. I will not be using any pastel or muddy colors.
 
My colors will also relate to blood, skin, and scrubs. Using the correct shade/tint of these colors will be very important. I believe making these changes will increase the communication level of my icon set.

02 March, 2010

IMAGE MAKING | Seven deadly sins

At the beginning of this project I was going to take pictures of objects only. One object that portray the sin. Then decided that that wasn't the best plan. I wasn't originally going to use people in my sin series. But then I decided to do the sins using only people's feet. I still have a lot of work to do, but I think this is a better plan then the first one.
I have taken a few test shots for four of the seven sins:
 
Gluttony

 
Envy

 
Sloth

 
Lust

I need to work on the pictures being more cohesive. Maybe using all natural light, or black and white. Maybe just shooting in one area. I have so many choices.

VIS COM | Color icons, with color swatches

We first used color pencils (Any color, hence my horrid color choices) to iterate where our final color palettes would be placed. During class we chose which selection we should continue to iterate.
 
  
The black boxes show the two directions I will be incorporating color into.
  [Time to combine]
After doing my color swatches for my icons, it's time for color iterations using the icons:
 
My two directions are divided and iterated using my three chosen icons. Out of the two directions, I like the one on the right, which fills the subject instead of just important parts of the object.
The four sets that have black boxes around them are iterations of the original iteration. I wanted to explore how the icons would communicate if they were filled with different colors, or used different colored background. I did this because all of my icons are very cohesive; some may say too cohesive, making them boring. I was trying to see if breaking the cohesion with different color choices would help my dilemma.
I am leaning towards the different fills.



F + S

 

(Heehe)

01 March, 2010

VIS COM | Color swatches revised

After class critque over icon color style choices, we went over color out color swatches and this is what I produced:

 
I think I have a pretty good color range and I am excited to see which colors look best with my icons. I really like the aqua blues and the bright reds. I think that would look nice with the outlines of my crisp white icons.
We will see!

VIS COM | Icon corrections and beginning color

After out "final" critique of our icons Friday, I realized of course these are not final. I received some good feedback and have been correcting them to better my icons. I believe one of the biggest things I need to correct is the weight of the white line and reducing the harsh black. The thick black rectangles are causing the white line to disappearing and losing the icon all together.
I am in the process of fixing that, and correcting/iterating based off my critque:
The top icons are the original, and you can see I am just iterating them below, allowing my to compare them to one another.
 

We have now began color, and I am excited to see what color will bring to our icons. I believe my icon group will look much more cohesive and complete when color is added. I am once again using my image booklet we made earlier in the project of all my items. I used these images to begin color swatches and ideas for out icon set: