Saturday, February 13, 2010

Just the Facts

Some people say that statistics lie.  Depending on how they are presented, they can frequently tell more than one story.  The same is true of the news as we all know.  What you hear, read, or even see is not always what actually happened or is only a surgical part of the whole story.  For example,  this photo below could have been taken on a gray day with the promise of a building storm.  It could leave the impression that the weather was quite foreboding when I was out and about.






If I tweak this photo just a little I can make the day sunny and filled with promise.  It looks like the weather may not be so bad after all once I candy-coat the image.  Maybe the storm is waning?



But what if I decide to be truly honest and let you see the full photo and let you decide for yourself about the sky that day?  What if I trust you enough to handle the full story...all the information?  It would make a big difference, wouldn't it?





(If you are an educator of children and teach critical thinking skills, please feel free to use this post.)

12 comments:

  1. So true....so true. Great post!! Thanks!!!
    Hugs
    SueAnn

    ReplyDelete
  2. Tabor, I still don't know the full truth, what is the trail of smoke, where did it come from?
    A steam train, a factory chimney, a small plane taking off?
    Or have you possibly invented the whole sequence, using photoshop?

    I think I should be told before I use it on children.

    ReplyDelete
  3. You are right Friko. It did actually come from the third smokestack, but that is not all that clear!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Beautiful. I may just have to use this in my middle school art class.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Clever you. This is a great post.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Framing and pulling out of context have been quite popular. Your cloudy sky explains this in pictures.Nice simple explanation,

    Thanx

    ReplyDelete
  7. EXCELLENT lesson!!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Always something to think about! I always look forward to your posts.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Great post! -- very insightful and thought-provoking!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Something in between black and white and even then it depends on the angle.

    ReplyDelete
  11. When you indicated that both pictures gave a false impression, I immediately wondered whether it was smoke and not cloud. What would be the response if you asked kids to guess how the first two pictures might be misleading?

    ReplyDelete
  12. Lovely poke....leave me smiling.

    ReplyDelete

Take your time...take a deep breath...then hit me with your best shot.