{"id":18846,"date":"2020-07-19T15:05:12","date_gmt":"2020-07-19T19:05:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/studentwork.prattsi.org\/infovis\/?p=18846"},"modified":"2020-07-19T15:08:26","modified_gmt":"2020-07-19T19:08:26","slug":"nyc-public-recycling-bins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/studentwork.prattsi.org\/infovis\/labs\/maps\/nyc-public-recycling-bins\/","title":{"rendered":"NYC Public Recycling Bins"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Introduction<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

While browsing the NYC Open Data website, I came across a dataset on New York City’s public recycling bins. I was intrigued to analyze this data because I haven’t seen any recycling bins throughout the city. I have always noticed trash bins filled with various plastic bottles and aluminum cans and wondered if that material would be sorted or just discarded along with other trash. For this lab, I wanted to see where precisely were these recycling bins throughout the boroughs especially Brooklyn, and if they were indoors or outdoors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Materials<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

First, I obtained the New York City Public Recycling Bin dataset<\/a> from the NYC Open Data website<\/a>. Next, in order to visualize the data, I went to the Carto<\/a> website. Carto is an open-source visualization software where users can run analysis and design custom maps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Fig 1. Carto website<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Process<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

First, I wanted to see if I could find visualizations of NYC’s public recycling bins so I did a Google search<\/a> with the words “NYC Public Recycling Bins.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Fig 2. Google search<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

I came across two interesting map visualizations with one utilizing Tableau and the other using Carto. The Tableau visualization I found was from a blog post<\/a> from Bessie Chu, a Product Manager of Big Data analytics reporting solution at GroupM. Bessie’s visualization was on Tableau Public <\/a>where I was able to see it clearly. I liked how the visualization was shown by site type (Indoor, Outdoor, etc).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Fig 3. Tableau Public visualization of NYC Public Recycling Bins by Bessie Chu<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Next, I looked at the Carto visualization<\/a> of NYC public recycling bins that was created by user jlaurenti.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Fig 4. Carto Public visualization by jlaurenti<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Before beginning the lab, I needed to understand how to use Carto as I was unfamiliar with the software. Fortunately, Chris Sula provided several YouTube videos that showed how to utilize Carto including a video<\/a> on how to create a map. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Next, I signed into Carto and imported the NYC public recycling bins dataset. I wanted to change the map style so I spent some time looking at the various map types. I settled on a Carto map with a Positron style because it looked the best visually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Fig 5. Changing map style <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I then wanted to change the color and size of the points on the map. I chose blue to reflect the commonly used color indicating that a bin\/container is for recycling. I also increased the point size to 9.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Fig 6. Changing point color and size<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Next, I wanted to add widgets to the map particularly the site type so I can see if the recycle bins were outdoor or indoors. I also added a widget for the address and borough location for the public recycle bins. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Fig 7. Adding widgets<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Finally, I wanted to add a pop-up legend to the map so that a user can click on a point and get detailed information about that particular recycle bin. For the Style, I chose Pop-Up Light and clicked on-site type, park site name, and address. I then renamed each to Site Name, Park Name, and Address.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Fig 8. Adding a pop-up legend <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

After finishing the setup of my visualization, I decided to explore it by seeing how many recycle bins were outside in Brooklyn. I was able to find this information by clicking on Outdoor under the Site Type widget and also clicking on Brooklyn under the borough widget. I discovered that there were 59 recycle bins that were outdoors in Brooklyn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Fig 9. Finding the total outdoor recycle bins in Brooklyn<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Next, I wanted to see if there were any recycle bins in a high pedestrian area such as Times Square. I did a search in the address widget and typed in “42 St” and then clicked on “42 St Btwn Broadway & 7 Ave.” The result showed that there was one outdoor recycle bin in Times Square. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Fig 10. Search for a recycle bin in Time Square<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Results<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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