information visualization chris north cs3724: hci
Post on 17-Jan-2016
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Information Visualization
Chris North
cs3724: HCI
What is Information Visualization?
• The use of computer-supported, interactive, visual representations of abstract data to amplify cognition
The Big Problem
Data
Human
How?
Data Transfer
• contacts, dict/thes, music, news, email, web•Books, papers, scientific data, VB ref
• vision: 90Mb/sec•Hear: 10/s, 44k/s•Smell: 1•Touch: •Taste•Neural link: huge•esp
Human Vision
• Highest bandwidth sense
• Fast, parallel
• Pattern recognition
• Pre-attentive
• Extends memory and cognitive capacity• (Multiplication test)
• People think visually
Impressive. Lets use it!
Find the Red Square:
The pop-out effect
• Which state has highest Income?• Relationship between Income and Education?• Outliers?
Per Capita Income
Col
lege
Deg
ree
%
Visual Representation Matters!
• Text vs. Graphics
• What if you could only see 1 state’s data at a time? (e.g. Census Bureau’s website)
• What if I read the data to you?
The Big Problem
Data
Human
How?
Data Transfer
•
•
Information Integration
The Bigger Problem
Data
Human
How?
Data Transfer
Interactive Graphics
• Homefinder
forms
• Avoid the temptation to design a form-based search engine• More tasks than just “search”
• How do I know what to “search” for?
• What if there’s something better that I don’t know to search for?
• Hides the data
User Tasks
• Easy stuff:• Min, max, average, %
• These only involve 1 data item or value
• Hard stuff:• Patterns, trends, distributions, changes over time,
• outliers, exceptions,
• relationships, correlations, multi-way,
• combined min/max, tradeoffs,
• clusters, groups, comparisons, context,
• anomalies, data errors,
• Paths, …
Excel can do this
Visualization can do this!
More than just “data transfer”
• Glean higher level knowledge from the data
• Reveals data• Reveals information about data that is not necessarily “stored” in the data• Learn = data information• Insight!
• Hides data• Hides “information”• Nothing learned• Zero insight
More than just “data transfer”
• Glean higher level knowledge from the data
• Reveals data• Reveals information about data that is not necessarily “stored” in the data• Learn = data information• Insight!
• Hides data• Hides “information”• Nothing learned• Zero insight
TheInsightFactor
Class Motto
Show me the data!
What’s the Big Deal?
Presentation is everything!
My Philosophy: Optimization
Visualization = the best of both
Impressive computation + impressive cognition
Computer•Serial•Symbolic•Static•Deterministic•Exact •Binary, 0/1•Computation•Programmed •Follow instructions•Amoral
Human•Parallel •Visual •Dynamic •Non-deterministic •Fuzzy•Gestalt, whole, patterns •Understanding •Free will•Creative •Moral
VisualizationDesign Principles
Increase Data Density• Calculate data/pixel
“A pixel is a terrible thing to waste.”
Eliminate “Chart Junk”
• How much “ink” is used for non-data?
• Reclaim empty space (% screen empty)
• Attempt simplicity(e.g. am I using 3djust for coolness?)
Information Visualization Mantra• Overview first, zoom and filter, then details on demand• Overview first, zoom and filter, then details on demand• Overview first, zoom and filter, then details on demand• Overview first, zoom and filter, then details on demand• Overview first, zoom and filter, then details on demand• Overview first, zoom and filter, then details on demand
InfoVis Design Principles
• Increase data density
• Eliminate “chart junk”• Mantra: Overview first, zoom&filter, details on demand
• Insight factor• Does the design reveal the data?
• Does the design help me explore, learn, understand?
• Show me the data!
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