A More Perfect Union

March 31, 2011 1:48 PM

In his project A More Perfect Union, artist R. Luke Dubois aggregated language used in the profiles of 19 million single Americans on 21 dating sites. He then organized the data to create "dozens of insanely detailed city and state maps which tell a wonderfully rich story about who we are, or at least, who we claim to be." A Video about the project. (R. Luke Dubois, previously on MeFi.)
posted by zarq (15 comments total)

From the sheer amount of Facebook updates and eBay auction recommendations I get from my female friends there, I can confirm that the women in eastern Oklahoma are really bored.
posted by queensissy at 1:54 PM on March 31, 2011

National Maps

State and City Maps

Artists's Statement, which explains that he used profiles from: "match.com | lavalife.com | plentyoffish.com | chemistry.com | okcupid.com | nerve.com | eharmony.com | singlesnet.com | perfectmatch.com | friendfinder.com | great-expectations.com | americansingles.com | date.com | christianmingle.com | gay.com | blacksingles.com | jdate.com | amor.com | asiafriendfinder.com | alt.com | collarme.com"
posted by zarq at 1:57 PM on March 31, 2011

To join a dating site you have to, quite literally, “put yourself out there”, describing yourself for the express purpose of being liked.

Uh, Michigan... bitch, holocaust, STD, cunt... you're doing this wrong.
posted by twoleftfeet at 2:30 PM on March 31, 2011

Kinky.

We need to introduce southern New Mexico to southern West Virginia.
posted by logicpunk at 2:37 PM on March 31, 2011 [2 favorites]

DuBois also used the data to generate heatmaps helping to draw comparisons between specific terms county by county.

Those aren't county-level... what's the geography? Looks like congressional districts, which is an odd choice.
posted by desjardins at 3:18 PM on March 31, 2011

Looks like congressional districts, which is an odd choice.

On first blush, I'd agree with you. Why politicize this project?

But then I realized that congressional districts 1. connect this process to the Census (which is used to appropriate districts among the states and is part of his artist's statement) and 2. approximate equal population in each "region."
posted by m@f at 3:27 PM on March 31, 2011

Oh. I was rather hoping the thread was going to be about this A More Perfect Union
posted by Flashman at 3:55 PM on March 31, 2011 [1 favorite]

Kudos for using some significant smaller religious and racial based dating sites. Based on the openness and varried sources, I'm surprised that I don't see a lgbt dating site.

Also, I bet the trashy factor would have gone up if he used ashley madison as a source.
posted by Nanukthedog at 4:12 PM on March 31, 2011

A More Perfect Union was also the best song of last year

great. Fairfield, Connecticut is somewhere around 'Insurance, Commute, Steal, Corporate'. way to make me feel sexy
posted by Lovecraft In Brooklyn at 4:20 PM on March 31, 2011 [1 favorite]

I'm surprised that I don't see a lgbt dating site

Gay.com, no?
posted by zarq at 4:49 PM on March 31, 2011

The dominant Arizona females should take a vacay over to submissive Oklahoma.
posted by iamkimiam at 6:04 PM on March 31, 2011

It appears I live in Schizophrenia Relapse Screenwriter. Sounds about right.
posted by queensissy at 6:17 PM on March 31, 2011 [1 favorite]

My hometown, Corsicana, TX coincides with the word Barbeque. Based on that, I would say this map is perfect.
posted by holdkris99 at 6:21 PM on March 31, 2011

Its cool to pick a highway and travel down word by word. Like from El Paso down the Texas state line: "Know Important Your Country Traveling Station Mexican"
posted by holdkris99 at 6:54 PM on March 31, 2011 [1 favorite]

Man, Springfield, Mass. sounds so melancholic: Nowhere, Postdoctoral, Imaginary, Bittersweet, Researcher, Philosophy.
posted by agentofselection at 9:54 PM on March 31, 2011