Wednesday, May 13, 2009

TED Talks - Hans Rosling: HIV in (not so) tiny bubbles

Here's yet another reason to love statistics and data: Hans Rosling's incredible talk at the 2009 TED Conference using data presented in graphical form by GapMinder, a non-profit seeking the "increased use and understanding of statistics and other information about social, economic and environmental development at local, national and global levels."


Rosling uses Gapminder data - which are online and fully interactive - to make the case that prevention, not treatment, is the way out of the HIV/AIDS pandemic. He also shares provocative graphics highlighting between- and within-country variability in HIV prevalence rates. 

Along the way, Rosling debunks a number of myths about the factors that worsen the epidemic in Africa, although he doesn't consider things like circumcision rates, prevalent sexually transmitted infections, etc. 

Be sure to explore GapMinder's gaps within the U.S., which effectively counter data-free claims made commonly on conservative talk shows that the U.S. leads the world in health and well-being. Not any more, folks.

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