Transferable Skills Course: Good paper - Good graphics

The workshop schedule is as follows:

26^th September 2023 (09:00-17:00)

1. Data visualisation - an introduction
A short introduction to data visualisation and discussion of any organisational issues.

2. The good, the bad and the ugly - learning from figures others have made.
We will discuss different charts - good, bad and ugly - to find out which ones you like, which ones you don't and why.

3. Design language - communicating information quickly and accurately.
A common design language throughout the paper is a key element in communicating information quickly and accurately. Used mainly for corporate identities, we will apply this concept to data communication.

4. Grammar of graphics
Every language needs a grammar, here you will learn the underlying concept of a scientific design language.

5. Pivot vs. spreadsheet
A short interlude on the pros and cons of pivot tables and spreadsheets - because we need them for the following steps.

6. Aesthetics
We will discuss different aesthetics that can be used in charts, such as colour, shape, pattern and more.

7. Gestalt Principles
The common basis of all designs.

27^th of September 2023 (09:00-17:00)

8. Graphs - and why there are so many.
We will deconstruct graphics and talk about all the small and big design elements and how we can use them to change meaning.

9. Layout - let it breathe.
A summary of the core elements of layout that are needed to create appealing characters.

10. Storyboarding your own paper/review/...
Every essay needs a story. In the final chapter of the workshop, we will move from design to storytelling and bring all the individual graphics together into one big story.

11. Open questions
There is always room for questions, during and after the workshop.

Important notice:

- Please bring you own data.

- No knowledge of any design program needed; we won’t use any.

- Further instructions as well as a small survey will follow around 2 weeks prior the workshop.

Please email gindrat@molgen.mpg.de to register for this course.

Before signing up for this workshop, please make sure that you can attend all the dates and write them in your calendar. If you do not show up or cancel at very short notice, other interested students will not be able to participate.