Reflections - Jasper

week2.md

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+# Week 2 Reflections
+
+![Flame Graph](https://www.brendangregg.com/FlameGraphs/cpu-mysql-updated.svg)
+
+This week my reflection is on flame graphs visualizations and their use for profiling application CPU time. Flame graphs
+visualize the hierarchical breakdown of a task into its component times. While they can be applied to a broad range of
+topics, they see the most use in profiling applications.
+
+I found this great [post by Brendan Gregg] on what flame graphs are and how they can be used to more efficiently express
+how an application spends its time. Most display libraries will allow a user to click on specific bands to zoom in on
+the x-axis for easier viewing. Additionally, color can be applied to help distinguish different various important pieces
+of information about the execution of a program such as the file or library a method originates. 
+
+![Colored Flame Graph](https://www.brendangregg.com/FlameGraphs/cpu-mixedmode-vertx.svg)
+
+In this example, Gregg shows a flame graph of a Java application. If we were debugging the performance, the colored
+regions be important as they help to highlight what we have direct control over. The green regions represent time spent
+by code within our control. Also while we would not be able to directly modify the orange kernel parts of the graph it
+may reveal delays that could be avoided by choosing a different approach.
+
+Gregg provides some examples using open source tools which he explains in his post for profiling and building flame
+graphs for your applications. That being said, I have found I have found [Intel VTune] to be the easiest and most
+straightforward approach for quickly debugging my C/C++/Rust projects as it has an easy installer, and you only need to
+provide it with an executable to get started. However, [Intel VTune] does not provide built in functionality to export
+these graphs so other projects like this [D3 Flame Graph Library] may also be helpful.
+
+[post by Brendan Gregg]: https://www.brendangregg.com/FlameGraphs/cpuflamegraphs.html
+[Intel VTune]: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/developer/tools/oneapi/vtune-profiler.html#gs.mwo5ib
+[D3 Flame Graph Library]: https://github.com/spiermar/d3-flame-graph

week3.md

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+# Week 3 reflections
+
+This week I was looking at a neat visualization of the stock market represented by bubbles. The visualization shows
+a more dynamic graph of how a large number of companies are doing over a period of time. It works by splitting companies
+into groups by industry then sizing each bubble by market cap evaluation. As time progresses a force is applied to each
+bubble towards its current evaluation. Due to the physics elements, it may not be entirely accurate for a specific time,
+but it allows someone without much experience to quickly evaluate the state of the market across hundreds of companies
+at the same time.
+
+I initially came across this visualization due to a link on [r/dataIsBeautiful]. So far, this appears to be the best
+example of it I have seen so far, but it appears to be based on a [tutorial] using D3 made by ChartFleau. ChartFleau
+also provides links to a [static version] using D3 as well as a more [dynamic version] using WebGL.
+
+> **Links to View**
+> - Video on [r/dataIsBeautiful]
+> - Interactive demo by [ChartFleau]
+
+[r/dataIsBeautiful]: https://www.reddit.com/r/dataisbeautiful/comments/sh22u8/oc_how_stocks_are_doing_in_2022/
+[tutorial]: https://www.chartfleau.com/tutorials/d3swarm
+[static version]: https://www.chartfleau.com/sp500
+[dynamic version]: https://www.chartfleau.com/bubblechart
+[ChartFleau]: https://www.chartfleau.com/bubblechart
+

week4.md

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+# Week 4 Reflections
+*[Link to Visualization]*
+
+For this week, I chose to look at a visualization from nearly a year ago (Feb 26, 2021) about visualizing airflow in
+classrooms to reduce the spread of coronavirus. This article consists of a scrollytelling visualization which shows a 3D
+classroom with simulated airflow while the article discusses the different options. Unsurprisingly, due to the need for
+smooth high definition web based 3D graphics, the visualization was backed using WebGL. While I was unable to try it,
+the article also allows viewers to view the article in augmented reality instead via the instagram app. Granted placing
+the link at the very end of the article likely
+
+At its core, the article comes down to advocating the use of additional ventilation in classrooms. It serves as a
+convincing argument, however I would have liked to have seen some data to back up their article. The room shown in the
+visualization is entirely fictitious created for the visualization and the article does not site any additional
+statistics. Without going too in depth, most of their sources appear to bee either quotes from health notable officials
+recommending additional ventilation and consultation on the accuracy of the simulation shown in the article. 
+
+
+[Link to Visualization]: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/02/26/science/reopen-schools-safety-ventilation.html

week5.md

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+# Week 5 Reflections
+*[Link to Visualization]*
+
+For this week, I looked at a visualization made by a redditor to show the hottest and coldest temperatures around the
+world based on latitude. The author ([u/neilrkaye]) explains in a comment that they created this visualization by first 
+using ggplot to create a number of images corresponding to different latitudes. Those images were then stitched together
+using ffmpeg to create the animation shown in the post. At the moment there is no interactive version, however the
+visualization definitely has the potential to be converted into one. The most obvious option being to make the latitude
+line draggable. It might also benefit from being able to select a smaller portion of the globe on the longitudinal axis. 
+It is also somewhat unclear where/how the data was sampled. The author linked the public dataset ([Berkeley Earth]) used
+to create the visualization, but without reading through their sources it is not immediately clear how the data was
+collected. The  visualization would also benefit from more use of color on the world map as it could help provide a
+better overview of the entire world.
+
+[Link to Visualization]: https://www.reddit.com/r/dataisbeautiful/comments/sq0pgh/temperature_range_between_coldest_and_hottest/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3
+[u/neilrkaye]: https://www.reddit.com/user/neilrkaye/
+[Berkeley Earth]: http://berkeleyearth.org/data/

week6.md

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+# Week 6 Reflections
+![View](imgs/week6.png)
+[Link to Visualization]
+
+For this week I looked at an interesting visualization showing a timelapse of version control for an open source project
+(Jina). Generally speaking, visualization of version control systems is already reasonably well-developed in the form of
+tree graphs to show commit/branch/merge history. However, these graphs have a downside in that they can become very
+long/tall and can be less useful when viewing a project with many branches but little activity. While less practical,
+this visualization was an interesting way of solving that problem in a somewhat chaotic manor. It shows the current
+state of a project at a given point of time. Each dot represents a single commit and each cluster represents a branch.
+Lines are then drawn between branches as they are formed. The area where this visualization really excels is in projects
+with many branches. Since the primary goal of this visualization was looking cool, it was missing some important
+information such as labels for branches and contributors, but this could be fixed for a more practical application. I
+believe it could additionally benefit from removing the glow effect and not displaying contributors on the graph area to
+reduce clutter.
+
+[Link to Visualization]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_LmnlaWhzo