Warconomy is a source-linked, versioned economic-impact reference well suited to teaching data literacy: tracing figures to sources, distinguishing live from sample data, reading confidence and freshness, pinning a version for reproducibility, and writing about data without causal overclaims. It is an aggregator, not a primary source — always trace a figure to its cited origin.
- Source-linked: trace every figure to its publisher.
- Versioned: pin a release for reproducible assignments.
- Honest labeling: live vs sample, confidence, freshness.
Trace every figure to its source
Each value links to the publisher that produced it. Teach students to cite the original source, not the aggregator. Source registry.
Live vs sample
Live values are genuinely sourced; sample rows are clearly labeled placeholders. A good exercise: have students identify which is which and why sample data must not be cited. Data coverage.
Confidence and freshness
Every live value carries a confidence level and review date. Use them to discuss uncertainty and how data ages. Quality scorecard.
Versioning and reproducibility
Pin a dataset version so an assignment is reproducible across a term. Discuss why frozen data matters for replication. Version registry.
Cautious language
Warconomy avoids causal overclaims ("associated with", "tracked alongside"). A useful lesson in how to write about data honestly. Methodology.