Reading Reports: An analogy

I was trying to think of the right analogy for what finding and seeing patterns in data is like, and I think the closest I'm going to get is this:


The objects making up the logo are there all along, hanging in seemingly disconnected places in the air. But as the camera's point of view moves through the scene, suddenly we look at them from the right point of view, and then the 4 is clearly visible.

That's what finding something in the data is like: it's always there, but you need to be standing in the right place, thinking of the right questions, to see it.


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Obviously there are more forced pespective sculptures in the world than just the Channel 4 logo, but that was the one that came most readily to mind. Here's one:

 
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