A. Endert, Chao Han, Dipayan Maiti, L. House, Scotland Leman, Chris North
{"title":"Observation-level interaction with statistical models for visual analytics","authors":"A. Endert, Chao Han, Dipayan Maiti, L. House, Scotland Leman, Chris North","doi":"10.1109/VAST.2011.6102449","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/VAST.2011.6102449","url":null,"abstract":"In visual analytics, sensemaking is facilitated through interactive visual exploration of data. Throughout this dynamic process, users combine their domain knowledge with the dataset to create insight. Therefore, visual analytic tools exist that aid sensemaking by providing various interaction techniques that focus on allowing users to change the visual representation through adjusting parameters of the underlying statistical model. However, we postulate that the process of sensemaking is not focused on a series of parameter adjustments, but instead, a series of perceived connections and patterns within the data. Thus, how can models for visual analytic tools be designed, so that users can express their reasoning on observations (the data), instead of directly on the model or tunable parameters? Observation level (and thus “observation”) in this paper refers to the data points within a visualization. In this paper, we explore two possible observation-level interactions, namely exploratory and expressive, within the context of three statistical methods, Probabilistic Principal Component Analysis (PPCA), Multidimensional Scaling (MDS), and Generative Topographic Mapping (GTM). We discuss the importance of these two types of observation level interactions, in terms of how they occur within the sensemaking process. Further, we present use cases for GTM, MDS, and PPCA, illustrating how observation level interaction can be incorporated into visual analytic tools.","PeriodicalId":103998,"journal":{"name":"2011 IEEE Conference on Visual Analytics Science and Technology (VAST)","volume":"46 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2011-12-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"116440293","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Iulian Peca, Haolin Zhi, K. Vrotsou, N. Andrienko, G. Andrienko
{"title":"KD-photomap: Exploring photographs in space and time","authors":"Iulian Peca, Haolin Zhi, K. Vrotsou, N. Andrienko, G. Andrienko","doi":"10.1109/VAST.2011.6102479","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/VAST.2011.6102479","url":null,"abstract":"KD-photomap is a web-based visual analytics system for browsing collections of geotagged Flickr photographs in search of interesting pictures, places, and events. Spatial filtering of the data is performed through zooming, moving or searching along the map. Temporal filtering is possible through defining time windows using interactive histograms and calendar controls. Information about the number and spatiotemporal distribution of photos captured in an explored area is continuously provided using various visual cues.","PeriodicalId":103998,"journal":{"name":"2011 IEEE Conference on Visual Analytics Science and Technology (VAST)","volume":"13 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2011-12-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"128732329","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Exploring agent-based simulations using temporal graphs","authors":"R. J. Crouser, Jeremy G. Freeman, Remco Chang","doi":"10.1109/VAST.2011.6102469","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/VAST.2011.6102469","url":null,"abstract":"Agent-based simulation has become a key technique for modeling and simulating dynamic, complicated behaviors in social and behavioral sciences. Lacking the appropriate tools and support, it is difficult for social scientists to thoroughly analyze the results of these simulations. In this work, we capture the complex relationships between discrete simulation states by visualizing the data as a temporal graph. In collaboration with expert analysts, we identify two graph structures which capture important relationships between pivotal states in the simulation and their inevitable outcomes. Finally, we demonstrate the utility of these structures in the interactive analysis of a large-scale social science simulation of political power in present-day Thailand.","PeriodicalId":103998,"journal":{"name":"2011 IEEE Conference on Visual Analytics Science and Technology (VAST)","volume":"246 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2011-12-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"133869348","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
T. May, A. Bannach, J. Davey, T. Ruppert, J. Kohlhammer
{"title":"Guiding feature subset selection with an interactive visualization","authors":"T. May, A. Bannach, J. Davey, T. Ruppert, J. Kohlhammer","doi":"10.1109/VAST.2011.6102448","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/VAST.2011.6102448","url":null,"abstract":"We propose a method for the semi-automated refinement of the results of feature subset selection algorithms. Feature subset selection is a preliminary step in data analysis which identifies the most useful subset of features (columns) in a data table. So-called filter techniques use statistical ranking measures for the correlation of features. Usually a measure is applied to all entities (rows) of a data table. However, the differing contributions of subsets of data entities are masked by statistical aggregation. Feature and entity subset selection are, thus, highly interdependent. Due to the difficulty in visualizing a high-dimensional data table, most feature subset selection algorithms are applied as a black box at the outset of an analysis. Our visualization technique, SmartStripes, allows users to step into the feature subset selection process. It enables the investigation of dependencies and interdependencies between different feature and entity subsets. A user may even choose to control the iterations manually, taking into account the ranking measures, the contributions of different entity subsets, as well as the semantics of the features.","PeriodicalId":103998,"journal":{"name":"2011 IEEE Conference on Visual Analytics Science and Technology (VAST)","volume":"16 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2011-12-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"132576029","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Geovisual analytics for cyber security: Adopting the GeoViz Toolkit","authors":"N. Giacobe, Sen Xu","doi":"10.1109/VAST.2011.6102491","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/VAST.2011.6102491","url":null,"abstract":"For the VAST 2011 Network Security Mini-Challenge, we adopted geovisual analytic methods and applied them in the field of network security. We used the GeoViz Toolkit [1] to represent cyber security events, by fabricating a simple “geography” of several sets of blocks (one for the workstations, one for the servers, and one for the Internet) using ArcGIS 10 (by ESRI - Environmental System Research Institute). Security data was tabulated using Perl scripts to parse the logs in order to create representations of event frequency and where they occurred on the network. The tabulated security data was then added as attributes of the geography. Exploration of the data and subsequent analysis of the meaning and impact of the cyber security events was made possible using the GeoViz Toolkit.","PeriodicalId":103998,"journal":{"name":"2011 IEEE Conference on Visual Analytics Science and Technology (VAST)","volume":"34 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2011-12-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"128882914","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Interactive data analysis with nSpace2®","authors":"C. Canfield, D. Sheffield","doi":"10.1109/VAST.2011.6102497","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/VAST.2011.6102497","url":null,"abstract":"nSpace2 is an innovative visual analytics tool that was the primary platform used to search, evaluate, and organize the data in the VAST 2011 Mini Challenge #3 dataset. nSpace2 is a web-based tool that is designed to facilitate the back-and-forth flow of the multiple steps of an analysis process, including search, data triage, organization, sense-making, and reporting. This paper describes how nSpace2 was used to assist every step of the analysis process for this VAST challenge.","PeriodicalId":103998,"journal":{"name":"2011 IEEE Conference on Visual Analytics Science and Technology (VAST)","volume":"15 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2011-12-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"127679671","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"An integrated visualization on network events VAST 2011 Mini Challenge #2 Award: “Outstanding integrated overview display”","authors":"Walter Marcelo Lamagna","doi":"10.1109/VAST.2011.6102493","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/VAST.2011.6102493","url":null,"abstract":"To visualize security trends for the data set provided by the VAST 2011 Mini Challenge #2 a custom tool has been developed. Open source tools [1,2], web programming languages [4,7] and an open source database [3] has been used to work with the data and create a visualization for security log files containing network security trends. In this paper, the tools and methods used for the analysis are described. The methods include the log synchronization with different timezone and the development of heat maps and parallel coordinates charts. To develop the visualization, Processing and Canvas [4,7] was used.","PeriodicalId":103998,"journal":{"name":"2011 IEEE Conference on Visual Analytics Science and Technology (VAST)","volume":"74 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2011-12-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"117069743","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Zhenyu Guo, M. Ward, Elke A. Rundensteiner, Carolina Ruiz
{"title":"Pointwise local pattern exploration for sensitivity analysis","authors":"Zhenyu Guo, M. Ward, Elke A. Rundensteiner, Carolina Ruiz","doi":"10.1109/VAST.2011.6102450","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/VAST.2011.6102450","url":null,"abstract":"Sensitivity analysis is a powerful method for discovering the significant factors that contribute to targets and understanding the interaction between variables in multivariate datasets. A number of sensitivity analysis methods fall into the class of local analysis, in which the sensitivity is defined as the partial derivatives of a target variable with respect to a group of independent variables. Incorporating sensitivity analysis in visual analytic tools is essential for multivariate phenomena analysis. However, most current multivariate visualization techniques do not allow users to explore local patterns individually for understanding the sensitivity from a pointwise view. In this paper, we present a novel pointwise local pattern exploration system for visual sensitivity analysis. Using this system, analysts are able to explore local patterns and the sensitivity at individual data points, which reveals the relationships between a focal point and its neighbors. During exploration, users are able to interactively change the derivative coefficients to perform sensitivity analysis based on different requirements as well as their domain knowledge. Each local pattern is assigned an outlier factor, so that users can quickly identify anomalous local patterns that do not conform with the global pattern. Users can also compare the local pattern with the global pattern both visually and statistically. Finally, the local pattern is integrated into the original attribute space using color mapping and jittering, which reveals the distribution of the partial derivatives. Case studies with real datasets are used to investigate the effectiveness of the visualizations and interactions.","PeriodicalId":103998,"journal":{"name":"2011 IEEE Conference on Visual Analytics Science and Technology (VAST)","volume":"70 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2011-12-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"123109566","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
E. Bertini, J. Buchmüller, Fabian Fischer, Stephan Huber, Thomas Lindemeier, Fabian Maass, Florian Mansmann, T. Ramm, Michael Regenscheit, Christian Rohrdantz, Christian Scheible, T. Schreck, Stephan Sellien, Florian Stoffel, Mark Tautzenberger, Matthias Zieker, D. Keim
{"title":"Visual analytics of terrorist activities related to epidemics","authors":"E. Bertini, J. Buchmüller, Fabian Fischer, Stephan Huber, Thomas Lindemeier, Fabian Maass, Florian Mansmann, T. Ramm, Michael Regenscheit, Christian Rohrdantz, Christian Scheible, T. Schreck, Stephan Sellien, Florian Stoffel, Mark Tautzenberger, Matthias Zieker, D. Keim","doi":"10.1109/VAST.2011.6102498","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/VAST.2011.6102498","url":null,"abstract":"The task of the VAST 2011 Grand Challenge was to investigate potential terrorist activities and their relation to the spread of an epidemic. Three different data sets were provided as part of three Mini Challenges (MCs). MC 1 was about analyzing geo-tagged microblogging (Twitter) messages to characterize the spread of an epidemic. MC 2 required analyzing threats to a computer network using a situational awareness approach. In MC 3 possible criminal and terrorist activities were to be analyzed based on a collection of news articles. To solve the Grand Challenge, insight from each of the individual MCs had to be integrated appropriately.","PeriodicalId":103998,"journal":{"name":"2011 IEEE Conference on Visual Analytics Science and Technology (VAST)","volume":"5 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2011-12-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"117115275","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Characterizing the intelligence analysis process: Informing visual analytics design through a longitudinal field study","authors":"Y. Kang, J. Stasko","doi":"10.1109/VAST.2011.6102438","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/VAST.2011.6102438","url":null,"abstract":"While intelligence analysis has been a primary target domain for visual analytics system development, relatively little user and task analysis has been conducted within this area. Our research community's understanding of the work processes and practices of intelligence analysts is not deep enough to adequately address their needs. Without a better understanding of the analysts and their problems, we cannot build visual analytics systems that integrate well with their work processes and truly provide benefit to them. In order to close this knowledge gap, we conducted a longitudinal, observational field study of intelligence analysts in training within the intelligence program at Mercyhurst College. We observed three teams of analysts, each working on an intelligence problem for a ten-week period. Based upon study findings, we describe and characterize processes and methods of intelligence analysis that we observed, make clarifications regarding the processes and practices, and suggest design implications for visual analytics systems for intelligence analysis.","PeriodicalId":103998,"journal":{"name":"2011 IEEE Conference on Visual Analytics Science and Technology (VAST)","volume":"109 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2011-12-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"125246025","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}