A good example of how to present data effectively – using data from a 60’s TV show.
Anyone who has followed Star Trek probably knows about the ‘red shirt’ phenomenon – in the original show any character wearing a red shirt was likely to die after beaming down to a planet.
But it takes the particular type of fan that Star Trek has produced to do a comprehensive analysis. Matt Bailey has done just that using Powerpoint and Excel charts.
It’s a good example of the options in presenting data – you should choose the tool (Powerpoint or Excel) that suits the data not the other way around.
The PPT slides were poorly made to over-emphasise his point. The Excel chart is impressive though it’s so long and detailed that it would not be much use in a presentation, it’s great for online use where you can zoom in.
What’s really worrying is that someone has tabulated all the ‘fatality’, love affair and other data from the shows at all – such is the love of Star Trek in some circles. How bored do you have to be to make a database of ‘deaths’ in a 60’s TV show? Perhaps it has something to do with the lack of new Star Trek TV or movies – fans have to comb the depths of past shows for new ‘insights’.
