A Data Visualization Newsletter

About two-thirds of the 11,700 Olympians competing in Tokyo are in their 20s, which is typically when athletes reach peak performance. But that’s not the case in all sports. Gymnastics and diving, for instance, have featured many teenage competitors over the years, while equestrian, sailing, and shooting cater to an older demographic. The Washington Post examines some of the biggest outliers in Olympic history.

Sunisa Lee continued her impressive Olympics campaign yesterday, nabbing bronze in the uneven bars. But that result might even be considered a disappointment for Lee, whose uneven bar routine is touted by some as the most impressive in the world. The New York Times chronicles Lee’s tough road to this year’s Olympics, and what makes her routine so unique.

Every 10 years, U.S. states are required to draw new electoral districts to account for population shifts. State legislatures have figured out a way to use this process to their party’s advantage and win more votes, a process known as gerrymandering. The Guardian put together this visual guide to help explain the ways Democrats and Republicans bend redistricting rules, and the guardrails put in place to help prevent it.

Some of the world’s largest tech companies, most notably Google and Facebook, have chosen to expand their headquarters on the coast of San Francisco Bay. But rising seas have put those buildings, and the communities around them, at risk of floods. Massive levee projects have been proposed to protect these areas, but a major question remains: who should be paying for it?

As the interstate highway system expanded rapidly in the 1950s, once-thriving black neighborhoods in many cities were demolished or cut in two to make way for new highways. Now, in places like the Rondo neighborhood of St. Paul, MN, community activists are calling for divided communities to be reconnected. The Biden administration has recommended that $1 billion of its infrastructure plan be put towards these sorts of efforts.