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The living conditions of migrant workers in Singapore have been under scrutiny recently, as work permit holders residing in dormitories now account for most confirmed COVID-19 cases in Singapore.
It is sobering that 100 years ago, Chinese immigrants in Singapore faced a similar risk. Overcrowding in Chinatown led to a higher incidence of tuberculosis and pneumonia, and likely a rise in the death count then. Today, we have the opportunity to do things differently.
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Data vis spotlight: small multiples
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Small multiples is a way of organising data visualisations, rather than a data visualisation type. As the name suggests, it repeats a chart type, at a small size and grid layout, to show progression or patterns of a variety of items, based on a common denominator. This example follows the latter purpose: we show the list of items Singaporeans have queued for from 1990-2019, based on headline counts.
Planning the structure of this story, I already knew I wanted to include a small multiples chart. It's an effective way to present a variety of data at a glance, and show how the pattern varies according to each item. From a writing perspective, I can then zoom in on the outliers (e.g., the two spikes for HDB housing), or explain the lulls (e.g., National Day Parade ticket).
Another advantage of this format is that it works with other chart types as well, so long as it presents small multiples of the same chart. Pew Research Center has a good primer on this. I chose a simple graph chart because headline counts were what I wanted to communicate. I also wanted each chart to look clean and easily understandable, to prevent visually overwhelming the reader when the charts are multiplied.
—Isabella, writer of "The things we queued for".
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Each month, we curate a list of content related to our newsletter's focus. Here's our pick of things to check out about Singapore's past and other local histories:
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