1. THE NEW FLOW OF INFORMATION
ORGANIZED DATA CHANGES CITIES
BY FABIOLA EINHORN, DECEMBER 2010

2. TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction 1
Methodology 2
OPEN DATA FOR PRIVATE USAGE 3
Access to data through open machine-readable formats 5
Raw data being provided with the tools to understand them 6
Anyone contributes to a database 7
Personal financial data open to public 8
Online market for data 9
Providers of federal statistics 10
INSTANT DATA MADE SIMPLE 11
Interactive map allows personal search 13
Real-time feed locates peoples tweets 14
Showing data in relation 15
Data turns into a game through an interactive map 16
Enables you to see patterns in your personal browsing history 17
GENERATING DATA FOR URBAN DEVELOPMENT 18
Using data collected on your mobile device to plan better routes for transportation 20
Efficitent grid models to track and control energy consumption 21
Coordinated emergency systems from different enteties 22
Accumulating active and passive data to keep water flowing 23
New media platforms are developed for informaion 24
Sensors provide drivers with the information they need to find a parking space 25
About author 26

3. THE NEW FLOW OF INFORMATION: ORGANIZED DATA CHANGES CITIES
As more sources of data are available to us through new technology, we see an increased complexity in how
to handle this information. Cities are especially effected by this complexity, due to rapid growth and
dynamic infrastructure, which is why urban environments are a focus in this report.
THE NEW FLOW OF INFORMATION IS DEFINED BY A SHIFT IN HOW DATA IS COLLECTED, DISTRIBUTED, PROCESSED AND
GENERATED FOR URBAN DEVELOPMENT AND COMMUNITY.
WHY THIS IS RELEVANT:
New data is becoming valuable to map out socioeconomic situations. Society is now integrated in many
ways, and it is important for us to see the whole picture, in order to identify problems, discover white space
and harness innovation.
“I want you to put your data on the web, because it turns out there is
still huge unlocket potential. We haven’t got data on the web as
data. Documents you read - and you follow liks from them, data you
can do all different kinds of stuff with”.
- Tim-Berners Lee, engineer and computer scientist
http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/tim_berners_lee_on_the_next_web.html
Introduction 1

4. METHODOLOGY:
Information has been gathered on urbanboardgame.tumblr.com from the month of September to Decem-
ber, 2010. With sources mainly from innovative trend blogs such as psfk.com, mashable.com and
springwise.com but also from many personal blogs and experts in the area, like Tim-Berners Lee, David Mc-
Candless and Hans Rosling, patterns have been identified and turned into micro trends. With hundreds of
examples, the aim is to present these objectively in order to help businesses develop a more relevant
approach to their product. The result is four marco trends, with six manifestations to exemplify the move-
ment in the field.
Each marco trend has an introduction page explaining the core idea and some key outcomes, followed by
the manifestations. At the bottom of the document you will find chapter headings.
Methodology 2

5. OPEN DATA FOR PRIVATE USAGE
The rapid increase of open data on the web and open sociopolitical policies enable private use of raw data.
Software is becoming open source, and people require certain data to be freely available to everyone, with-
out restrictions from copyright, patents or other mechanisms of control.
ACCESS TO DATA THROUGH OPEN PERSONAL FINANCIAL DATA
MACHINE-READABLE FORMATS. OPEN TO PUBLIC
Federal data opens up for public Financial private data is now available
use in SF. as statistics.
DATA SF MINT DATA
http://datasf.org/ http://www.data.mint.com/
RAW DATA BEING PROVIDED WITH THE ONLINE MARKET FOR DATA
TOOLS TO UNDERSTAND THEM. Data is being sold and bought
Makes organizations data accessible in by the public.
one place for use. INFOCHIMPS
GOOGLE PUBLIC DATA EXPLORER http://infochimps.com/
http://www.google.com/publicdata/directory
ANYONE CONTRIBUTES TO PROVIDERS OF FEDERAL STATISTICS
A DATABASE Statistics open for interaction and easy
Open source map, that people can edit understanding.
and contribute to. NCOMVA
OPEN STREET MAP http://www.ncomva.se/
http://www.openstreetmap.org/
Open Data for Private Usage 3

6. KEY INSIGHTS:
- RAW DATA IS BEING USED IN A NEW PRODUCTIVE MANNER, AS THE PRIVATE SECTOR IS PROVIDED THE
TOOLS TO MANIPULATE IT.
- GOVERNMENT IS OPENING UP, BEING A PLATFORM FOR INNOVATION RATHER THAN A PROVIDER.
- OPEN ACCESS TO DATA IS MORE FREQUENTLY BECOMING A STANDARD IN SOCIETY, AS OPPOSITION IS
SEEN AGAINST COPYRIGHT AND PATENT LAWS.
- PERSONAL DATA IS NOW MORE COMMONLY SHARED ONLINE THROUGH SOCIAL NETWORKS.
“A "free software cloud" may seem to be an oxymoron, like "non-combat troops." But I believe that free
software and remote computing were made for each other; their future lies together and the sooner they
converge, the faster they will evolve and gain adoption. In fact, I believe a free software cloud - much
more than the "open cloud" that many organizations are working on - lies in our future.”
- Andy Oram, technology information provider and publisher
http://radar.oreilly.com/andyo/index.html
Open Data for Private Usage 4

7. ACCESS TO DATA THROUGH OPEN MACHINE-READABLE FORMATS
DataSF is a central clearinghouse for datasets published by the City & County of San Francisco. The data is avail-
able through intuitive searches such as keywords, categories and rating. The site encourages other governmen-
tal organizations to create similar sites, through underlying open source technologies, policies and procedures,
all open to the public.
RESULT:
- INCREASED NUMBER AND QUALITY OF DATASETS, INCREASING AMOUNT OF APPS BUILT FOR THE
PUBLIC TO UNDERSTAND THEM.
Open Data for Private Usage 5

8. RAW DATA BEING PROVIDED WITH THE TOOLS TO UNDERSTAND THEM
Google public data explorer takes data one step further and lets users explore it through interactive data visual-
izations. Journalists, students and policy makers can embed the visualizations to their websites and have the
data being updated automatically.
RESULT:
- INCREASED UNDERSTANDING OF PATTERNS AND THEORIES FOR THE PUBLIC.
Open Data for Private Usage 6

9. ANYONE CONTRIBUTES TO A DATABASE
Open Street Map is a map of the world that anyone can contribute to and edit. It creates a community for people
to share their paths and their history of editing. Furthermore, the map is available for any software engineer to
use.
RESULT:
- SOFTWARE ENGENEERING AT BASIC LEVELS BECOME COMMON KNOWLEDGE.
Open Data for Private Usage 7

10. PERONAL FINANCIAL DATA OPEN TO PUBLIC
Mint, the financial software company now reveals it’s access to thousands of user’s data, and turns it into beauti-
ful graphs for us to use. Search for any city and category, and lists and tables are available for you to see restau-
rants popularity and to compare your spending with a similar demographic.
RESULT:
- Financial data which was before seen as a private matter, is now seen as something you can share
and learn from in society.
Open Data for Private Usage 8

11. ONLINE MARKET FOR DATA
Infochips is user submitted data, some for sale and some free. Find some by tag, or browse the most popular
ones. Access data via API, and cleaned up excel sheets. The site encourages you to share your own data for
others to see.
RESULT:
- AN EXCESSABLE MARKET FOR DATA THAT CAN BE READ BY BOTH YOU AND MACHINES.
Open Data for Private Usage 9

12. PROVIDERS OF FEDERAL STATISTICS
NComVA is a spin-off comapny from the Norrkoping Visualization center at Linkoping Univerisy - one of the
leading reaserch laboratories in the area of visulaization. They provide you with the tools to access the federal
data bank by identifying what you want to know, the software to visualize and understand it, and the tools to
share by creating an online presentaion.
RESULT:
- COMPLEX FEDERAL STATISTICS ARE OPEN FOR INTERPRETAION AND LEARNING
Open Data for Private Usage 10

13. INSTANT DATA MADE SIMPLE
To understand the vast complexity of data recently opened up for private usage, we are creating new sys-
tems for information. Data is being visualized, creating a new, instant language for understanding.
INTERACTIVE MAP ALLOWS SHOWING DATA IN RELATION
PERSONAL SEARCH Data can be compared visually to form
Find crime in your area. new meaning.
STAMEN CRIMESPOTTING THE BILLION DOLLAR-O-GRAM
http://stamen.com/projects/crimespotting http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/visualiz
ations/the-billion-dollar-o-gram-2009/
REAL-TIME FEED LOCATES DATA TURNS INTO A GAME THROUGH
PEOPLES TWEETS AN INTERACTIVE MAP
A heat map locating online activity. Learn about Americas health in
A WORLD OF TWEETS a fun way.
http://aworldoftweets.frogdesign.com/ SALUBRIOUS NATION
http://salubriousnation.com/
CHANGING VISUAL TO UNDERSTAND ENABLES YOU TO SEE PATTERNS IN
DYNAMIC OF TIME AND DATA YOUR PERSONAL BROWSING HISTORY
Map changes according to tweets at a Software created to store your browsing
particular time. data and make it visual.
PULSE OF THE NATION ROOT MARKETS
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujcrJZRSG http://stamen.com/clients/root
kg
Instant Data made Simple 11

14. KEY INSIGHTS:
- ART AND PATTERN RECOGNITION COME TOGETHER AS TOOLS TO UNDERSTAND COMPLEX DATA.
- ART BECOMES MORE THAN A MEDIUM, IT BECOMES A NEW LANGUAGE AND SYSTEM OF UNDER-
STANDING.
- VISUALIZATIONS BECOME THE WAY TO PORTRAY DATA INSTANTLY.
- BOTH ACTIVE AND PASSIVE DATA COME TOGETHER FOR A GREATER UNDERSTANDING.
“Data is the new soil. The eye is extremely sensitive towards patterns. It loves them,
and calles them beautiful. It’s the language of the eye, and if you combine the lan-
guage of the eye with the language of the mind, which is about words and numbers,
you start speaking two languages simultaneously, each enhancing the other”.
- David McCandless, writer, designer and author
http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/david_mccandless_the_beauty_of_data_visualization.html
Instant Data Made Simple 12

15. INTERACTIVE MAP ALLOWS PERSONAL SEARCH
STAMEN provides an interactive map of San Francisco and Oakland, for you to understand crime in your area.
With the belief that public information should be public, crimes can be viewed by type, time and location. Under-
stand what is going on in your neighborhood, according to your specific concerns, or your potential next home.
RESULT:
- COMMUNITY CONTROL AND EXTENSIVE KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF PERSONAL AND
LOCAL CONCERNS
Instant Data Made Simple 13

16. REAL-TIME FEED LOCATES PEOPLES TWEETS
A World of Tweets is an attempt by Frog Design to make the Twitter API data more meaningful. With the help
of the Yahoo! Placemaker, tweets are localized in real time.
RESULT:
- LOCAL AND GLOBAL EVENTS THAT ARE HOT TOPICS ON TWITTER ARE EASILY IDENTIFIED THROUGH
ACTIVITY.
Instant Data Made Simple 14

17. SHOWING DATA IN RELATION
David McCandless is an agent for spreading information that is beautiful. Through creative visualizations, he
helps people understand problems that for long needed clarity.
RESULT:
- INFORMATION BECOMES BEAUTIFUL AND PROBLEMS ARE SOLVED BY GEOMETRY.
Instant Data Made Simple 15

18. DATA TURNS INTO A GAME THROUGH AN INTERACTIVE MAP
An attept to educate the masses on public health through interactive game play.
RESULT:
- VISUALIZATIONS BECOME AN EDUCATIONAL TOOL.
Instant Data Made Simple 16

19. ENABLES YOU TO SEE PATTERNS IN YOUR PERSONAL BROWSING HISTORY
Another project by STAMEN and Root Market. Root Market creates software for you to track and store your per-
sonal browsing history. STAMEN provides the visualization, that makes you have increased insight into how
much time you spend on play vs. work, how much money advertisers are making off your attention,
and much more.
RESULT:
- DATA EMERGES THAT CAN HELP INCREASE PRODUCTIVITY, MAP OUT ATTENTION ON THE WEB, AND LO-
CALIZE BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES.
Instant Data Made Simple 17

20. GENERATING DATA FOR URBAN DEVELOPMENT
Information is translated into a better understanding of how to organize structure in society. This is seen in
transportation systems and technical devices, and makes us efficient in cities.
USING DATA COLLECTED ON YOUR ACCUMULATING ACTIVE AND PASSIVE
MOBILE DEVICE TO PLAN BETTER DATA TO KEEP WATER FLOWING
. ROUTES FOR TRANSPORTATION An app that allows you to engage in
Sensors for topography and activity. comunity services.
THE COPENHAGEN WHEEL FLOW
http://senseable.mit.edu/copenhagenwheel/ http://watermapmonitordev.appspot.com/
EFFICIENT GRID MODELS TO TRACK NEW MEDIA PLATFORMS ARE DEVEL-
AND CONTROL ENERGY CONSUPTION OPED FOR INFORMATION
Consumers learn how they spend. Exploring domestic devices capabilities
IBM SMARTER PLANET to display information.
http://www.youtube.com/ibmsmarterplanetu DENTSU LONDON
k#p/c/2/lQ0RupXt_8U http://vimeo.com/16423199
COORDINATED EMERGENCY SYSTEMS SENSORS PROVIDE DRIVERS WITH THE
FROM DIFFERENT ENTITIES INFORMATION THEY NEED TO FIND
Data comes together. A PARKING SPACE
MADRID EMERGENCY An app that shows you available park-
RESPONSE SYSTEM ing and lets you avoid congestion.
http://www.youtube.com/ibm#p/c/725BC585 SF PARK
285EF2BC/7/8EtH25GA_F4 http://sfpark.org/
Generating Data for Urban Development 18

21. KEY INSIGHTS:
- RESOURCES ARE BEING MANAGED THROUGH SMART SYSTEMS.
- TRANSPORTATION ROUTES ARE BEING OPTIMIZED THROUGH THE TRACKING OF DATA.
- INFORMATION IS BEING INCORPORATED INTO EVERY ASPECT OF OUR DAILY LIVES THROUGH CON-
VENTIONAL DOMESTIC DEVICES.
With greater analysis of existing information, they could better serve their citizens or patients, or
.
gain competitive advantage and sell more products and services. This is propelling businesses
around the world to not just continue to invest in analytic-based solutions but to increase their
investment.
- Paul Glader, The Wall Street Journal
http://asmarterplanet.com/blog/category/smart-banking/page/2
Generating Data for Urban Development 19

22. USING DATA COLLECTED ON YOUR MOBILE DEVICE TO PLAN BETTER ROUTES
FOR TRANSPORTATION
The Copenhaugen Wheel is a sensor that can easily be mountesd on your bike to provide you with the data you
want to know as a cyclist. Not only is it your personal trainer, but get real time updates on upcoming traffic con-
gestion, weather conditions and pollution levels, all through your smart phone.
RESULT:
- CYCLISTS GET REAL TIME INFORMATION TO BETTER PLAN THEIR ROUTES, URBAN PLANNERS GET THE
TOOLS TO IMPROVE INFRASTRUCTURE.
Generating Data for Urban Development 20

23. EFFICIENT GRID MODELS TO TRACK AND CONTROL ENERGY CONSUMPTION
IBM is working on many projects, collecting data to make infrastructure, energy consumption, public safety
amongst other things more productive. Smarter Power for Smarter Cities is a project developed by technitians
at IBM, developing the tools to create optimized energy grids.
RESULT:
- BETTER INFRASTRUCTURE IN URBAN ENVIRONMENTS.
Generating Data for Urban Development 21

24. COORDINATED EMERGENCY SYSTEMS FROM DIFFERENT ENTITIES
CISEM, Madrids new coordinated emergency system, allows the fire department, traffic, hospital and police
department to correspond simulataneously. Emergency calls can be coordinated to provide assistance from all
departments to each location, instantly. User friendly interfaces and secure access to data together with the net-
work of information is enabled through IBM technology.
RESULT:
- OPTIMIZED PUBLIC SAFETY THROUGH COORDINATED DATA.
Generating Data for Urban Development 22

25. ACCUMULATING ACTIVE AND PASSIVE DATA TO KEEP WATER FLOWING
FLOW (field level operations watch) is an open source smart phone app, that allows field workers to document
how well water flows at different pumps and sanitation points in developing countries. This data together with
the data from sensors, gets transmitted to create an online map of targeted areas.
RESULT:
- FASTER IDENTIFICATION OF PROBLEMS THROUGH REAL TIME TAGGING.
Generating Data for Urban Development 23

26. NEW MEDIA PLATFORMS ARE DEVELOPED FOR INFORMATION
Dentsu London explores what it would mean for the public if conventional domestic devices carried the informa-
tion your smart phone would. Updates on your alarm clock, your receipt from a restaurant and your TV on
stand-by mode could all be optimized to provide you with information.
RESULT:
- INFORMATION BECOMES VISIBLE IN NEW PLACES, NOT ONLY DIGITAL - ALSO ANALOG.
Generating Data for Urban Development 24

27. SENSORS PROVIDE DRIVERS WITH THE INFORMATION THEY NEED TO FIND A
PARKING SPACE
Sensors located by parking spaces signal when it is available, so that drivers know through their smart phones
or online where the nearest parking space is. Parking will also be distributed more evenly through the system,
with the goal of having one space available every block.
RESULT:
- LESS CONGESTION AND POLLUTION IN TRAFFIC, STEADIER FLOW OF CUSTOMERS FOR BUSINESS
OWNERS.
Generating Data for Urban Development 25

28. ABOUT AUTHOR:
Half Swedish, half Swiss, I grew up in different parts of Europe and provide a unique perspective on trends
in the US. As a student at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, major in advertising, I have a
strong curiosity for business, art and communication. My expertise in brands, strategy, urban planning,
design, research and account planning has lead me to the development of this trend report.
CONTACT:
fabiola.einhorn@gmail.com
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