May 6, 2006
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The Scientist (04/01/06) Vol. 20, No. 4, P. 46
Harding, Anne
Efforts to improve data visualization techniques are being fueled by both the ballooning volumes of information available to life scientists and the burgeoning amount of computer power at their disposal. Current data visualization challenges stem from the complexity as well as the quantity of information, according to San Diego's Philip Bourne, who co-directs the Research Collaboratory for Structural Bioinformatics Protein Data Bank. "You've got this convergence of different data types and you need new tools and new ways of looking at that, and you really want to see that together," he says. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory scientist Lincoln Stein favors the use of "lightweight and easily configurable" systems, and notes that first-generation data visualization programs were too tightly integrated with the data, making adaptation to individual users' needs an extremely arduous process. Stein, Bourne, and other researchers are looking to increase data visualization programs' flexibility and ease of use with workbenches or toolkits whose configurable elements and compatible interfaces facilitate adaptation. Next-generation visualization software may be designed to enable users to immerse themselves in the data. Such technology would allow scientists to study the data from every perspective in a collaborative manner, according to Stein. He says this dovetails with visualization's biggest overall advantage: Its ability to cultivate interdisciplinary collaboration by helping researchers in diverse fields comprehend problems in order to address them more effectively.
For the full article see http://www.the-scientist.com
Posted by rab5 at 01:34 PM
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