http://analyticjournalism.blogharbor.com/blog/DataEnvelopmentAnalysis en-us http://analyticjournalism.blogharbor.com/blog/_archives/2009/1/20/4063832.html <p><font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif">Peter Harkins, at his blog <a href="http://push.cx/">Push CX</a>, suggests "<a href="http://push.cx/2009/rules-of-database-app-aging">Three rules for data base creation and management</a>": </font> </p> <ol> <li> <h3><font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif">All Fields Become Optional</font> </h3></li> <li> <h3><font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif">All Relationships Become Many-to-Many</font> </h3></li> <li> <h3><font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif">Chatter Always Expands</font> </h3> <hr size="2" width="100%" /> <br /> </p></li> </ol> analyticjournalism 2009-01-20T09:18:00-07:00 http://analyticjournalism.blogharbor.com/blog/_archives/2006/6/7/2013314.html <font size="2"><span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Hats off to </span></font><span class="byline"><font size="2"><span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">MICHAEL MANSUR and RICK MONTGOMERY of The Kansas City Star for taking on a tough -- and often controversial challenge -- of trying to measure the quality of services provided by city government.&nbsp; The discipline/methodology underlying "<a href="http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/special_packages/cityservices/">Our Tax Dollars at Work</a>" is broadly called "</span><a style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;" href="http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1540-6210.2005.00443.x">performance measurement</a><span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">" in government, "</span><a style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;" href="http://www.edwardspub.com/journals/JFA/students.html">forensic accounting</a><span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">" in the business world.&nbsp; What we see as a sub-set, or, perhaps, a sibling, methodology was employed for this study, "</span></font></span><font size="2"><a href="http://www.emp.pdx.edu/dea/homedea.html">Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA)</a>."&nbsp; <br><br></font><span class="byline"><font size="2"><span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mansur and Montgomery are on the right track with these stories, but unfortunately, the online presentation falls short.&nbsp; </span><a style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;" href="http://services.kcstar.com/aggregate_data/police.shtml">For example</a><span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">, ofttimes (well, typically) rankings are displayed, but in no obvious order, neither alphabetical by city nor rank order of scores.&nbsp; Furthermore, the pages don't supply any information that tells the reader if a low score is desireable or a high one.&nbsp; This is a case where good infographics and/or visual statistics could make for a much better telling of the tale.</span><br style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">That said, keep on keepin' on, gents.&nbsp; It's this type of work that, in the long run, will help citizens conclude that good journalism is crucial to the democratic process.</span></font><br></span><br><div style="margin-left: 40px;"><font style="font-weight: bold;" size="2">From the <a href="http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/special_packages/cityservices/">Kansas City Star</a>...</font>.<br style="font-style: italic;"></div><div style="margin-left: 40px; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><font size="2"><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/special_packages/cityservices/14741455.htm" class="topstory-headline">Our tax dollars at work: Who's doing the best job? </a><br style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;" class="topstory-headline2">We find hidden facts, and some surprises, on who’s giving you the most for your money.<br></span><br style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;" class="byline">By MICHAEL MANSUR and RICK MONTGOMERY, The Kansas City Star</span><br style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"> Think about how carefully your town spends your money. Maybe you haven’t a clue. Maybe you harbor hunches. Definitely, you should know. </span></font></div> <ul style="font-style: italic; margin-left: 40px; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;" class="relatedlist"><li><font size="2"><a href="http://services.kcstar.com/aggregate_data/index_monday.shtml" target="new">Scores for each service, listed by city</a></font></li><li><font size="2"><a href="http://services.kcstar.com/general_services/index_monday.shtml" target="new">Data that was used in The Star's measurement and how the cities scored</a></font></li><li><font size="2"><a href="http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/local/14740663.htm">Combining services enhances public safety</a></font></li><li><font size="2"><a href="http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/local/14740664.htm">Technology, planning can help speed justice</a></font></li><li><font size="2"><a href="http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/local/14740892.htm">Dividing law enforcement units for best results<br></a></font></li></ul><br><hr style="width: 100%; height: 2px;"> JTJ 2006-06-07T11:09:00-06:00