Phillip Cox

This is no ordinary data science book. Speak Data is the first pop nonfiction book to explore the definition of data and its impacts on our daily lives. Insightful ideas and colorful data illustrations by award-winning information designer Giorgia Lupi guide you from one observation and revelation to the next."Data is almost anything, because almost anything can get recorded. But it’s kind of a magical thing—potentially one of the most powerful things humans have ever done." —James Clear, author of Atomic Habits Today we are told that data is everywhere, from the smartphones in our pockets to the satellites in space. But what is data, really? What role does it play in our lives? And why should anyone care? Through inspiring illustrations and a fresh, accessible approach, Speak Data invites us to see data differently—not just as numbers on a screen or tick marks in a chart, but as a language to help us better understand each other and the world around us. Seventeen thought-provoking conversations with leaders in business, tech, medicine, psychology, health, art, and more explore the human side of data, unpacking its powerful ability to divulge patterns, tell stories, stir emotion, and illuminate complexity. While often stereotyped as abstract or intimidating, here data is revealed as something far different: personal, nuanced, and above all, human made. Featuring: Tech pioneer John Maeda on the value of data visualization during global emergencies. Marketing legend Seth Godin on how to use data to get people to really care about climate change. Museum curator Paola Antonelli on whether data is art. Atomic Habits author James Clear on the ways data can (and can’t) describe human identity. AI data artist Refik Anadol on how big datasets can dream. And many more. In this uniquely interdisciplinary study, authors Giorgia Lupi and Phillip Cox present data as a vocabulary that anyone can use and that anyone can understand. If we learn to truly “speak data,” we can open up new worlds of meaning for ourselves and everything around us.

Hoosier architect Evans Woollen (1927-2016) made a profound contribution to the built identity of Indianapolis, Indiana. Most recognized for introducing concrete Brutalism to the city, his practice was in fact surprisingly diverse, ranging from significant public buildings that are today some of the city's most iconic structures to humble churches, single-family homes, and historic renovations. Some loved his emphatic, proudly modern buildings, while others found them challenging, severe, or even ugly, but all agreed they were boundary pushing, the handiwork of an iconoclastic architect on the cutting edge of contemporary design. Surveying the full breadth of Woollen's six-decade career, What a Building Does tells the complete story of this essential Midwestern practitioner for the first time: from his early years as a student of Philip Johnson and Louis Kahn; to his decision to open his practice in Indianapolis; to his later professional successes across Indiana and beyond. With a focus on ten of Woollen's most important built works, this book explores the dynamic ideas which shaped his architecture and the complex relationship he held with Indianapolis, his hometown. Most significantly, it also discovers a multi-decade practice of empathetic, human-centered design conducted long before such ideas were mainstream. Featuring nearly 150 new full-color photos, never-before-seen archival material, and dozens of interviews with former colleagues, clients, and friends, What a Building Does expands the narrative of modern architecture and its legacy in the American Midwest.