Yoshi Torralva-Looking Outwards-07

Air Transformed: Better with Data Society Commission is a project by Stefanie Posavec and Miriam Quick in 2015 to use data visualization techniques to communicate air quality. In this looking outwards post, I will be focusing on the aspect of this project called Seeing Air. These are physical acetate glasses that people wear to visualize large particles, small particles, and nitrogen dioxide in Sheffield, UK. These elements were assigned specific icons that are etched onto a layer of the lense. Data is provided through air quality sensors owned by the Sheffield City Council. Stefanie Posavec and Miriam Quick most likely created an algorithm that interprets the data and assigns the scale in which the patterned icons would be set. What I admire is how this data visualization piece is how immersive it is. One can view the designs when not worn but truly experience what it’s like to see out of metaphorical air quality. People may not understand how severe air quality is. Through visualizing this data, people can see the world through a lens that makes people aware of the importance of taking action on climate change.