After learning more about data this past week, I found an interesting data chart from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, shown on https://www.bls.gov/charts/employment-situation/civilian-unemployment-rate.htm. I sought out to find data on the unemployment rates in the United States because I am currently applying for full-time jobs. When millions of Americans were laid off or furloughed earlier in 2020, it scared me. After looking at this data, it made me more confident about the recovering job market.

The data in the chart shows the civilian unemployment rate, which has been seasonally adjusted. This data shows the civilian unemployment rate since 2000, which allows the reader to compare the current job market to other uncertain times in the job market, such as 2008 and 2009. This time range makes this data efficient because many readers will remember the job market in 2008 and 2009. In the graph, it also shows the exact unemployment rate in a percent when the curser is placed over the line in the graph. This is an efficient way to show the exact rate for a specific period in time. This data could be improved by creating a larger graph to allow readers to see the data better. When you create a larger graph, comparing three or more demographic data points becomes an easier task to complete.

This data chart is similar to The Demographics of Others data visualization example that was provided for this week’s hands-on activity. In both The Demographics of Others and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics civilian unemployment rate, different demographics can be compared. I like this feature in both displays of data, but U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics civilian unemployment rate displayed their data in a more efficient way. This is because the reader is able to click on different demographics, such as age, race, or gender, and compare the different unemployment rates easily. The data points for each new demographic appears on the same graph, which means it is easy to compare 16 to 19 years old unemployment rates to the total civilian population rate. In The Demographics of Others, the data is not easily compared between demographics because the data points for different demographics do not appear in the same display. The reader has to click back and forth between demographics in order to compare, which is not as easy at the unemployment rates chart.

The data on civilian unemployment rates relates back to the provided reading for this week titled “What is Data?”. It relates back to this reading because the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics is an online space where civilians can go to learn facts to gain a better understanding of the current job market. The chart collects all of the unemployment data and displays it into information that Americans can use as a resource. I thought this was a useful source of information to each person who is looking for a job right now. This is also a great example for applying the information learned about data from this week’s reading and assignment.