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Envisioning Information
878
BOOK REVIEWS
Despite the diversity ofcutaneous operations, the editors have successfully produced a highquality book that helps to define "Dermatologic Surgery." Undoubtedly, it will become a standard text for dermatologic surgical procedures and, will find its way into the library of dermatologists worldwide. Christopher B. Zachary, M.B.,B.S., M.R.e.p. Department of Dermatology University of Minnesota Hospital and Clinics Minneapolis, Minnesota
Envisioning Information, by Edward R. Tufte, 126 pp, with illus, $48, Box 430, Cheshire, CT 06410, Graphics Press, 1990 Envisioning Information is a beautifully designed and illustrated book that could alternatively have been titled, "Portraying Data." The author, Edward R. Tufte, teaches statistics, graphic design, and political economy at Yale. In this work, he instructs readers, through many and varied examples, how to portray data informatively and aesthetically. In the introduction, Tufte invites readers to "escape flatland" and to explore methods of representing our complex world within the twodimensional limitations of paper and video screen. The chapter entitled "MicrolMacro Readings" deals with the display of both the big picture and the exquisite detail within the same image. One example discussed is the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, DC. The observer scanning this work understands the gravity of 58,000 deaths. On close scrutiny, the name of each individual soldier is evident. Other concepts of design include the uses and abuses of color, the importance of position in tabular displays, the choice ofbackground material (for example, dark versus light electrocardiographic grids), the value ofthe empty space in an image, the cutting of clutter or "weight" from data, and the difficulties inherent in computergenerated graphics.
Mayo Clin Proc, August 1991, Vol 66
The primary goal ofportraying data is clarity. Tufte emphasizes that simplicity is not a guarantee of clarity because "the worlds we seek to understand are complex and intricate." Rather, we seek "a rich texture of data...and understanding of complexity revealed with an economy of means." This text is an amalgam of richly illustrated examples ofhow to and how not to portray data. A few examples pertain to medical information, but most are obtained from numerous other sources, including maps, manuscripts ofGalileo, railroad timetables, dance notation, equipment annotations, and a textbook of Euclid's geometry. The source ofthe examples is secondary; the principles they convey can be applied to any data set. This book is beautifully printed on heavy paper arid bound well. Tufte takes readers on a journey through our "information-thick worlds." , Overall, he has as much fun with words as he does with graphics, although his language occasionally gets in the way. I prefer this work to Tufte's previous book, The Visual Display of Quantitative Information, which contained more negative than positive examples. Envisioning Information will be potentially valuable to graphic designers, statisticians, physicians, basic scientists, artists, and virtually anyone looking for more clear and creative ways to portray information. Lynn C. Hartmann, M.D. Division of Medical Oncology
Minimizing Medical Mistakes: The Art of Medical Decision Making, by Richard K. Riegelman, 228 pp, $24.50, Boston, Little, Brown and Company, 1991 This book contains 14 chapters and an appendix. The chapters are divided into three groups, and the mnemonics SHADE, PESTER, and TRUST are used. The chapters that describe diagnosis address symptoms, hunches, alternatives, disease identification, and explanation. The material that deals with therapy reviews prediction,
BOOK REVIEWS
Despite the diversity ofcutaneous operations, the editors have successfully produced a highquality book that helps to define "Dermatologic Surgery." Undoubtedly, it will become a standard text for dermatologic surgical procedures and, will find its way into the library of dermatologists worldwide. Christopher B. Zachary, M.B.,B.S., M.R.e.p. Department of Dermatology University of Minnesota Hospital and Clinics Minneapolis, Minnesota
Envisioning Information, by Edward R. Tufte, 126 pp, with illus, $48, Box 430, Cheshire, CT 06410, Graphics Press, 1990 Envisioning Information is a beautifully designed and illustrated book that could alternatively have been titled, "Portraying Data." The author, Edward R. Tufte, teaches statistics, graphic design, and political economy at Yale. In this work, he instructs readers, through many and varied examples, how to portray data informatively and aesthetically. In the introduction, Tufte invites readers to "escape flatland" and to explore methods of representing our complex world within the twodimensional limitations of paper and video screen. The chapter entitled "MicrolMacro Readings" deals with the display of both the big picture and the exquisite detail within the same image. One example discussed is the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, DC. The observer scanning this work understands the gravity of 58,000 deaths. On close scrutiny, the name of each individual soldier is evident. Other concepts of design include the uses and abuses of color, the importance of position in tabular displays, the choice ofbackground material (for example, dark versus light electrocardiographic grids), the value ofthe empty space in an image, the cutting of clutter or "weight" from data, and the difficulties inherent in computergenerated graphics.
Mayo Clin Proc, August 1991, Vol 66
The primary goal ofportraying data is clarity. Tufte emphasizes that simplicity is not a guarantee of clarity because "the worlds we seek to understand are complex and intricate." Rather, we seek "a rich texture of data...and understanding of complexity revealed with an economy of means." This text is an amalgam of richly illustrated examples ofhow to and how not to portray data. A few examples pertain to medical information, but most are obtained from numerous other sources, including maps, manuscripts ofGalileo, railroad timetables, dance notation, equipment annotations, and a textbook of Euclid's geometry. The source ofthe examples is secondary; the principles they convey can be applied to any data set. This book is beautifully printed on heavy paper arid bound well. Tufte takes readers on a journey through our "information-thick worlds." , Overall, he has as much fun with words as he does with graphics, although his language occasionally gets in the way. I prefer this work to Tufte's previous book, The Visual Display of Quantitative Information, which contained more negative than positive examples. Envisioning Information will be potentially valuable to graphic designers, statisticians, physicians, basic scientists, artists, and virtually anyone looking for more clear and creative ways to portray information. Lynn C. Hartmann, M.D. Division of Medical Oncology
Minimizing Medical Mistakes: The Art of Medical Decision Making, by Richard K. Riegelman, 228 pp, $24.50, Boston, Little, Brown and Company, 1991 This book contains 14 chapters and an appendix. The chapters are divided into three groups, and the mnemonics SHADE, PESTER, and TRUST are used. The chapters that describe diagnosis address symptoms, hunches, alternatives, disease identification, and explanation. The material that deals with therapy reviews prediction,