Author(s): Gareth Cook

Reference

The rise of infographics across virtually all print and electronic media-from a visually arresting map of global Twitter traffic to a graphic of how we describe ourselves in online dating profileS-reveals patterns in our lives and our world in fresh and surprising ways. In the era of big data, where information moves faster than ever, infographics provide us with quick, often influential bursts of art and knowledge-on the environment, politics, social issues, health, sports, arts and culture, and more-to digest, to tweet, to share, to go viral.

"The Best American Infographics" captures the finest examples from the past year, including the ten best interactive infographics, of this mesmerizing new way of seeing and understanding our world.