SCIENCE (OR) FICTION
ISTD Data Visualisation Brief, 2017
In response to the 2017 ISTD Data Visualisation brief comes ‘Science (or) Fiction’, a body of work exploring the relationships between three sub-genres of science fiction: Cyberpunk, Hollow Earth and First Encounters and the related conspiracy theories, in their own volume/index and wall poster, respectively.
Taking stylistic inspiration from 1960’s sci-fi zines and early pulp fiction comics, each volume presents series of essays on the sub-genre from a range of authors and sources, alongside several data visualisation sets. The data visualisations explore a range of display methods, each varying in style and exploring a vast array of topics such as UFO sightings per decade, most extreme depths reached by human drilling, and technological predictions made by science fiction works and the years in which they were realised.
1) Detail from Volume 1: First Encounters. 'Science Fiction, Ufology and Hollywood' by Nick Pope (Edited for length).
Available online here.
Available online here.
2) Back cover detail from Volume 2: Hollow Earth. "What came first. The science, the fiction, or the trend?"
Detail from the Cyberpunk wall poster 'From the Mind to the Moon'.
Through the consistent use of the font family Base 900 and EnviroCare stock, the volumes take on a sophisticated,
yet retro, fun feel. Simple geometric lines and shapes as well as the use of the dot-gain texture add a not only a level
of simplicity, but dimension, and contextual sensibility to the data visualisations.
yet retro, fun feel. Simple geometric lines and shapes as well as the use of the dot-gain texture add a not only a level
of simplicity, but dimension, and contextual sensibility to the data visualisations.
1) Detail from Volume 1: First Encounters. 'Close Encounters of the Following Kind'. A data visualisation of the frequency
of all UFO sightings with respect to their place on "the Hynek Scale, developed by scientist J. Allen Hynek—which is also
known as the 'close encounters' scale—was created to accurately categorise UFO sightings based on a criteria of intensity
of the interaction."
of all UFO sightings with respect to their place on "the Hynek Scale, developed by scientist J. Allen Hynek—which is also
known as the 'close encounters' scale—was created to accurately categorise UFO sightings based on a criteria of intensity
of the interaction."
2) Detail from Volume 3: Cyberpunk. 'Stop writing dystopian sci-fi, it's making us all fear technology', by Michael Solana.
(Edited for length) Available online here.
(Edited for length) Available online here.
The accompanying posters which measure over a meter in length explore three key areas of interest and cleverly adapted titles from each sub-genre: ‘From the Mind to the Moon’ (based off of Jules Verne's From the Earth to the Moon), a visualisation of all realised technological predictions made in sci-fi literature history; ‘Your Guide to the Galaxy’ (from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams) a complete guide to the extraterrestrial fictional universe; and ‘Our Journey to the Center’ (Inspired by Journey to the Center of the Earth, also by Jules Verne) from explores all hollow earth releases from the last 200 years.
Detail from Volume 1: First Encounters, 'UFO sightings per decade'. Displaying the frequency of UFO sightings over 200 years.
Details from the Hollow Earth wall poster 'Our Journey to the Center'.
1) Detail from Volume 2: Hollow Earth. 'Giants, Germans, and a Little Sun', by Eric Grundhauser.
(Edited for length) Available online here.
(Edited for length) Available online here.
2) Volume cover details.
Detail from the First Encounters wall poster 'Your Guide to the Galaxy. Who you might find'.
