Scientific Visualization Article from ARSC newsletter Challenges, Volume 2, Number 2 Visualization Helps Researchers Bring Their Data Into Focus Beata Sarnowski, User Services Consultant, in one of ARSC's visualization labs on the University of Alaska Fairbanks campus.
Visualization is the graphical display of numeric data.
Well-designed visualizations help researchers interpret numeric data and communicate their findings to others. Visualization techniques include the display of data in three dimensions, animation to show time evolution, use of color to bring out detail, and semi-transparent objects to reveal multiple layers of information. Scientific visualization is an important research tool that often leads to scientific discovery because computer images bring into focus interactions and trends in data. Visualizations of the human body help doctors diagnose and treat disease, and pharmaceutical drug designers are aided by visualizations of molecules. Extensions of visualization include interactive imaging and virtual reality.