Data visualization - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Data visualization is the study of the visual representation of data

Data

The term data refers to qualitative or quantitative attributes of a variable or set of variables. Data are typically the results of measurements and can be the basis of graphs, images, or observations of a set of variables. Data are often viewed as the lowest level of abstraction from which...

, meaning "information that has been abstracted in some schematic form, including attributes or variables for the units of information".

According to Friedman (2008) the "main goal of data visualization is to communicate information clearly and effectively through graphical means. It doesn’t mean that data visualization needs to look boring to be functional or extremely sophisticated to look beautiful. To convey ideas effectively, both aesthetic form and functionality need to go hand in hand, providing insights into a rather sparse and complex data set by communicating its key-aspects in a more intuitive way. Yet designers often fail to achieve a balance between design and function, creating gorgeous data visualizations which fail to serve their main purpose — to communicate information". Indeed, Fernanda Viegas

Fernanda Viégas

Fernanda Bertini Viégas is a Brazilian scientist and designer whose work focuses on the social, collaborative, and artistic aspects of information visualization. Viégas received a Ph.D. in Media Arts and Sciences from the MIT Media Lab in 2005. The same year she began work at the Cambridge location...

and Martin M. Wattenberg

Martin M. Wattenberg

Martin M. Wattenberg is an American scientist and artist known for his work with data visualization. Along with Fernanda Viégas, he worked at the Cambridge location of IBM's Thomas J. Watson Research Center as part of the Visual Communication Lab, and created Many Eyes...

have suggested that an ideal visualization should not merely communicate clearly, but stimulate viewer engagement and attention

Data visualization is closely related to information graphics

Information graphics

Information graphics or infographics are graphic visual representations of information, data or knowledge. These graphics present complex information quickly and clearly, such as in signs, maps, journalism, technical writing, and education...

, information visualization

Information visualization

Information visualization is the interdisciplinary study of "the visual representation of large-scale collections of non-numerical information, such as files and lines of code in software systems, library and bibliographic databases, networks of relations on the internet, and so forth".- Overview...

, scientific visualization

Scientific visualization

Scientific visualization is an interdisciplinary branch of science according to Friendly "primarily concerned with the visualization of three-dimensional phenomena , where the emphasis is on realistic renderings of volumes, surfaces, illumination sources, and so forth, perhaps...

, and statistical graphics

Statistical graphics

Statistical graphics, also known as graphical techniques, are information graphics in the field of statistics used to visualize quantitative data.- Overview :...

. In the new millennium, data visualization has become an active area of research, teaching, and development. According to Post et al. (2002), it has united the field of scientific and information visualization. As demonstrated by Brian Willison, data visualization has been also been linked to enhancing agile software development and customer engagement.

KPI Library has developed the “Periodic Table of Visualization Methods”, an interactive chart displaying various data visualization methods http://www.visual-literacy.org/periodic_table/periodic_table.html. It details 6 types of data visualization methods: data, information, concept, strategy, metaphor and compound.

Data visualization scope

There are different approaches on the scope of data visualization. One common focus is on information presentation such as Friedman (2008) presented it. On this way Friendly (2008) presumes two main parts of data visualization: statistical graphics

Statistical graphics

Statistical graphics, also known as graphical techniques, are information graphics in the field of statistics used to visualize quantitative data.- Overview :...

, and thematic cartography

Thematic map

A thematic map is a type of map or chart especially designed to show a particular theme connected with a specific geographic area. These maps "can portray physical, social, political, cultural, economic, sociological, agricultural, or any other aspects of a city, state, region,nation , or...

. In this line the "Data Visualization: Modern Approaches" (2007) article gives an overview of seven subjects of data visualization:

Mindmaps
Displaying news
News
News is the communication of selected information on current events which is presented by print, broadcast, Internet, or word of mouth to a third party or mass audience.- Etymology :...
Displaying data
Data
The term data refers to qualitative or quantitative attributes of a variable or set of variables. Data are typically the results of measurements and can be the basis of graphs, images, or observations of a set of variables. Data are often viewed as the lowest level of abstraction from which...
Displaying connections
Displaying website
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...

s
Articles
Article (publishing)
An article is a written work published in a print or electronic medium. It may be for the purpose of propagating the news, research results, academic analysis or debate.-News articles:...

& resources
Tools and services

All these subjects are closely related to graphic design

Graphic design

Graphic design is a creative process – most often involving a client and a designer and usually completed in conjunction with producers of form – undertaken in order to convey a specific message to a targeted audience...

and information representation.
On the other hand, from a computer science

Computer science

Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...

perspective, Frits H. Post (2002) categorized the field into a number of sub-fields:

Visualization algorithm
Algorithm
In mathematics and computer science, an algorithm is an effective method expressed as a finite list of well-defined instructions for calculating a function. Algorithms are used for calculation, data processing, and automated reasoning...

s and techniques
Volume visualization
Information visualization
Information visualization
Information visualization is the interdisciplinary study of "the visual representation of large-scale collections of non-numerical information, such as files and lines of code in software systems, library and bibliographic databases, networks of relations on the internet, and so forth".- Overview...
Multiresolution methods
Modelling techniques and
Interaction techniques and architectures

Data acquisition

Data acquisition is the process of sampling signals that measure real world physical conditions and converting the resulting samples into digital numeric values that can be manipulated by a computer. Data acquisition systems typically convert analog waveforms into digital values for processing...

is the sampling of the real world to generate data that can be manipulated by a computer. Sometimes abbreviated DAQ or DAS, data acquisition typically involves acquisition of signals and waveforms and processing the signals to obtain desired information. The components of data acquisition systems include appropriate sensors that convert any measurement parameter to an electrical signal, which is acquired by data acquisition hardware.

Data analysis

Analysis of data is a process of inspecting, cleaning, transforming, and modeling data with the goal of highlighting useful information, suggesting conclusions, and supporting decision making...

is the process of studying and summarizing data

Data

with the intent to extract useful information

Information

Information in its most restricted technical sense is a message or collection of messages that consists of an ordered sequence of symbols, or it is the meaning that can be interpreted from such a message or collection of messages. Information can be recorded or transmitted. It can be recorded as...

and develop conclusions. Data analysis is closely related to data mining

Data mining

Data mining , a relatively young and interdisciplinary field of computer science is the process of discovering new patterns from large data sets involving methods at the intersection of artificial intelligence, machine learning, statistics and database systems...

, but data mining tends to focus on larger data sets, with less emphasis on making inference

Inference

Inference is the act or process of deriving logical conclusions from premises known or assumed to be true. The conclusion drawn is also called an idiomatic. The laws of valid inference are studied in the field of logic.Human inference Inference is the act or process of deriving logical conclusions...

, and often uses data that was originally collected for a different purpose. In statistical applications

Statistics

Statistics is the study of the collection, organization, analysis, and interpretation of data. It deals with all aspects of this, including the planning of data collection in terms of the design of surveys and experiments....

, some people divide data analysis into descriptive statistics

Descriptive statistics

Descriptive statistics quantitatively describe the main features of a collection of data. Descriptive statistics are distinguished from inferential statistics , in that descriptive statistics aim to summarize a data set, rather than use the data to learn about the population that the data are...

, exploratory data analysis

Exploratory data analysis

In statistics, exploratory data analysis is an approach to analysing data sets to summarize their main characteristics in easy-to-understand form, often with visual graphs, without using a statistical model or having formulated a hypothesis...

, and inferential statistics (or confirmatory data analysis), where the EDA focuses on discovering new features in the data, and CDA on confirming or falsifying existing hypotheses.

Types of data analysis are:

Exploratory data analysis
Exploratory data analysis
In statistics, exploratory data analysis is an approach to analysing data sets to summarize their main characteristics in easy-to-understand form, often with visual graphs, without using a statistical model or having formulated a hypothesis...

(EDA): an approach to analyzing data for the purpose of formulating hypotheses
Hypothesis
A hypothesis is a proposed explanation for a phenomenon. The term derives from the Greek, ὑποτιθέναι – hypotithenai meaning "to put under" or "to suppose". For a hypothesis to be put forward as a scientific hypothesis, the scientific method requires that one can test it...

worth testing, complementing the tools of conventional statistics
Statistics
Statistics is the study of the collection, organization, analysis, and interpretation of data. It deals with all aspects of this, including the planning of data collection in terms of the design of surveys and experiments....

for testing hypotheses. It was so named by John Tukey
John Tukey
John Wilder Tukey ForMemRS was an American statistician.- Biography :Tukey was born in New Bedford, Massachusetts in 1915, and obtained a B.A. in 1936 and M.Sc. in 1937, in chemistry, from Brown University, before moving to Princeton University where he received a Ph.D...

.
Qualitative data analysis (QDA) or qualitative research
Qualitative research
Qualitative research is a method of inquiry employed in many different academic disciplines, traditionally in the social sciences, but also in market research and further contexts. Qualitative researchers aim to gather an in-depth understanding of human behavior and the reasons that govern such...

is the analysis of non-numerical data, for example words, photographs, observations, etc.

Data governance

Data governance is an emerging discipline with an evolving definition. The discipline embodies a convergence of data quality, data management, data policies, business process management, and risk management surrounding the handling of data in an organization...

encompasses the people, processes and technology required to create a consistent, enterprise view of an organisation's data in order to:

Increase consistency & confidence in decision making
Decrease the risk of regulatory fines
Improve data security
Maximize the income generation potential of data
Designate accountability for information quality

Data management

Data management comprises all the disciplines related to managing data as a valuable resource.- Overview :The official definition provided by DAMA International, the professional organization for those in the data management profession, is: "Data Resource Management is the development and execution...

comprises all the academic disciplines related to managing data

Data

as a valuable resource. The official definition provided by DAMA

DAMA

DAMA is a not-for-profit, vendor-independent, international association of technical and business professionals dedicated to advancing the concepts and practices of information resource management and data resource management .DAMA's primary purpose is to promote the understanding, development...

is that "Data Resource Management is the development and execution of architectures, policies, practices, and procedures that properly manage the full data lifecycle needs of an enterprise." This definition is fairly broad and encompasses a number of professions that may not have direct technical contact with lower-level aspects of data management, such as relational database

Relational database

A relational database is a database that conforms to relational model theory. The software used in a relational database is called a relational database management system . Colloquial use of the term "relational database" may refer to the RDBMS software, or the relational database itself...

management.

Data mining

is the process of sorting

Sorting

Sorting is any process of arranging items in some sequence and/or in different sets, and accordingly, it has two common, yet distinct meanings:# ordering: arranging items of the same kind, class, nature, etc...

through large amounts of data and picking out relevant information. It is usually used by business intelligence

Business intelligence

Business intelligence mainly refers to computer-based techniques used in identifying, extracting, and analyzing business data, such as sales revenue by products and/or departments, or by associated costs and incomes....

organizations, and financial analyst

Financial analyst

A financial analyst, securities analyst, research analyst, equity analyst, or investment analyst is a person who performs financial analysis for external or internal clients as a core part of the job.-Job:...

s, but is increasingly being used in the sciences to extract information from the enormous data set

Data set

A data set is a collection of data, usually presented in tabular form. Each column represents a particular variable. Each row corresponds to a given member of the data set in question. Its values for each of the variables, such as height and weight of an object or values of random numbers. Each...

s generated by modern experimental and observational methods.

It has been described as "the nontrivial extraction of implicit, previously unknown, and potentially useful information

Information

from data

Data

" and "the science of extracting useful information from large data set

Data set

s or database

Database

A database is an organized collection of data for one or more purposes, usually in digital form. The data are typically organized to model relevant aspects of reality , in a way that supports processes requiring this information...

s." In relation to enterprise resource planning

Enterprise resource planning

Enterprise resource planning systems integrate internal and external management information across an entire organization, embracing finance/accounting, manufacturing, sales and service, customer relationship management, etc. ERP systems automate this activity with an integrated software application...

, according to Monk (2006), data mining is "the statistical and logical analysis of large sets of transaction data, looking for patterns that can aid decision making".

Data transforms

Data transforms is the process of Automation and Transformation, of both real-time and offline data from one format to another. There are standards and protocols that provide the specifications and rules, and it usually occurs in the process pipeline of aggregation or consolidation or interoperability. The primary use cases are in integration systems organizations, and compliance personnels.

Data visualization software

Software	Type	Targeted Users	License
Avizo Avizo (software) Avizo is a general-purpose commercial software application for scientific and industrial data visualization and analysis....	GUI/Code Data Visualisation	Engineers and Scientists	Proprietary
Cave5D Cave5D Cave5D is an adaptation of Vis5D to the CAVE for immersive virtual reality.-Bibliography:* W. Hibbard, J. Anderson, I. Foster, B. Paul, R. Jacob, C. Schafer, and M. Tyree, Exploring Coupled Atmosphere-Ocean Models Using Vis5D, Int. J. of Supercomputer Applications 10, no. 2, 1996,...	Virtual Reality Data Visualization	Scientists	Open Source
Data Desk Data Desk Data Desk is a software program for visual data analysis, visual data exploration, and statistics. It carries out Exploratory Data Analysis and standard statistical analyses by means of dynamically linked graphic data displays that update any change simultaneously.-History:Data Desk was developed...	GUI Data Visualisation	Statisician	Proprietary
DAVIX DAVIX DAVIX is a Live CD based on Slackware for the purposes of computer security operations. The distribution focuses on data analysis and visualization . DAVIX stands for Data Analysis and VIsualization linuX. It is the first Live CD to integrate so many visualization tools...	Operating System with data tools	Security Consultant	Various
Dundas Data Visualization, Inc. Dundas Data Visualization, Inc. Dundas Data Visualization, Inc. formerly known as Dundas Software Ltd is a commercial software development company with headquarters in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are mostly known for their Dundas Components product . Currently Dundas Data Visualization produces Data Visualization and Dashboard...	GUI Data Visualisation	Business Managers	Proprietary
ELKI	Data mining visualizations	Scientists and Teachers	Open Source
Eye-Sys Eye-Sys Eye-Sys is a general-purpose commercial visualization application. It was developed by Interactive Data Visualization, Inc. , developers of the SpeedTree video game middleware. Eye-Sys development was partially funded by the U.S...	GUI/Code Data Visualisation	Engineers and Scientists	Proprietary
Ferret Data Visualization and Analysis Ferret Data Visualization and Analysis Ferret is an interactive computer visualization and analysis environment designed to meet the needs of oceanographers and meteorologists analyzing large and complex gridded data sets. Ferret offers a Mathematica-like approach to analysis; new variables may be defined interactively as mathematical...	Gridded Datasets Visualisation	Oceanographers and meteorologists	Open Source
Trendalyzer Trendalyzer Trendalyzer is an information visualization software for animation of statistics that was initially developed by Hans Rosling's Gapminder Foundation in Sweden. In March 2007 it was acquired by Google Inc....	Data Visualisation	Teachers	Proprietary
GGobi GGobi GGobi is a free statistical software tool used for graphing various types of data. GGobi allows extensive exploration of the data with Interactive dynamic graphics. It is also a tool for looking at multivariate data. R can be used in sync with GGobi...	GUI Data Visualisation	Statisician	Open Source
Grapheur Grapheur Grapheur is a data mining, modeling and interactive visualization package implementing the Reactive Business Intelligence approach.-Overview:...	GUI Data Visualisation	Business Users	Proprietary
ggplot2 Ggplot2 ggplot2 is a data visualization package for the statistical programming language R. Created by Hadley Wickham in 2005, ggplot2 as an implementation of Leland Wilkinson's Grammar of Graphics--a general scheme for data visualization which breaks up graph into semantic components such as scales and...	Data visualization package for R R (programming language) R is a programming language and software environment for statistical computing and graphics. The R language is widely used among statisticians for developing statistical software, and R is widely used for statistical software development and data analysis....	Programmers	Open Source
Mondrian Mondrian data analysis Mondrian is a general-purpose statistical data-visualization system. It features outstanding visualization techniques for data of almost any kind, and has its particular strength compared to other tools when working with Categorical Data, Geographical Data and LARGE Data.All plots in Mondrian are...	GUI Data Visualisation	Statisician	Open Source
IBM OpenDX	GUI/Code Data Visualisation	Engineers and Scientists	Open Source
IDL (programming language)	Code Data Visualisation	Programmer	Many
IDL (programming language)	Programming Language	Programmer	Open Source
InetSoft InetSoft InetSoft Technology Corporation is a privately owned multinational computer software company that develops free and commercial web-based business intelligence applications...	Company	Many	Proprietary
Instantatlas Instantatlas InstantAtlas is a data visualization and reporting tool used for communicating location-based statistical data held in spreadsheets and desktop Geographic Information System software. InstantAtlas is used by analysts, researchers, statisticians and GIS professionals...	GIS Data Visualisation	Analysts, researchers, statisticians and GIS professionals	Proprietary
MeVisLab MeVisLab MeVisLab is a cross-platform application framework for medical image processing and scientific visualization. It includes advanced algorithms for image registration, segmentation, and quantitative morphological and functional image analysis...	GUI/Code Data Visualisation	Engineers and Scientists	Proprietary
OpenLink AJAX Toolkit OpenLink AJAX Toolkit OpenLink AJAX Toolkit is a JavaScript-based toolkit for browser-independent Rich Internet Application development. It includes a rich collection of UI Widgets/Controls, Event Management System, and a truly platform independent Data Access Layer called AJAX Database Connectivity...	Library / Toolkit	Programmers	GPL
ParaView ParaView ParaView is an open source, freely available program for parallel, interactive, scientific visualization. It has a client–server architecture to facilitate remote visualization of datasets, and generates level of detail models to maintain interactive framerates for large datasets. It is an...	GUI/Code Data Visualisation	Engineers and Scientists	BSD
Processing (programming language) Processing (programming language) Processing is an open source programming language and integrated development environment built for the electronic arts and visual design communities with the purpose of teaching the basics of computer programming in a visual context, and to serve as the foundation for electronic sketchbooks...	Programming Language	Programmers	GPL
protovis Protovis Protovis is a visualization toolkit for JavaScript that takes a graphical approach to data visualization by allowing the user to specify how the data should be encoded in the marks representing it on the screen. The project is led by Mike Bostock and Jeff Heer of the Stanford Visualization Group,...	Library / Toolkit	Programmers	BSD
Smile (software) Smile (software) Smile is a Macintosh computer programming and working environment based on AppleScript. It features a number of production technologies and a natural fashion of having them work together...	GUI/Code Data Visualisation	Engineers and Scientists	Proprietary
Spotfire Spotfire Spotfire was a business intelligence company based in Somerville, Massachusetts. It was bought by TIBCO in 2007.-History:Spotfire's origins trace back to the Human-Computer Interaction Laboratory at the University of Maryland, College Park where, in the early 1990s, Christopher Ahlberg, a visiting...	GUI Data Visualisation	Business Users	Proprietary
StatSoft StatSoft StatSoft is a global provider of enterprise and desktop software for data analysis, data management, data visualization, data mining , and quality control.-Company History:...	Company of GUI/Code Data Visualisation Software	Engineers and Scientists	Proprietary
Tableau Software Tableau Software Tableau Software is an American computer software company headquartered in Seattle, WA, USA. It produces a family of interactive data visualization products focused on business intelligence, and is reportedly anticipating revenue of $30 million to $40 million in 2010.- History :The company traces...	GUI Data Visualisation	Business Users	Proprietary
TinkerPlots TinkerPlots TinkerPlots is exploratory data analysis software designed for use by students in grades 4-8. It was designed by Clifford Konold and Craig Miller at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and is published by Key Curriculum Press. It has some similarities with Fathom, and runs on Windows XP or...	GUI Data Visualisation	Students	Proprietary
Tom Sawyer Software Tom Sawyer Software Tom Sawyer Software is a software company that provides products used to build data visualization and social network analysis applications. Organizations use these applications to better understand relationships, trends, and patterns in their complex data sets to identify emerging opportunities and...	Data Visualization	Business Users, Engineers, and Scientists	Proprietary
Trade Space Visualizer Trade Space Visualizer The Trade Space Visualizer is a data visualization tool developed at the Applied Research Laboratory at The Pennsylvania State University. Initial development started in 2002, and it is currently supported by a team at ARL/Penn State.- Overview :...	GUI/Code Data Visualisation	Engineers and Scientists	Proprietary
Visifire Visifire Visifire is a set of data visualization components powered by Microsoft Silverlight & WPF. Visifire is a multi-targeting control which can be used in both WPF & Silverlight applications. One can use the same API to create charts & gauges in Mobile, Web & Desktop environments. Visifire can also be...	Library	Programmers	Was Open Source, now Proprietary
Vis5D Vis5D Vis5D is a 3-D visualization system used primarily for animated 3-D visualization of weather simulations. It was the first system to produce fully interactive animated 3-D displays of time-dynamic volumetric data sets and the first open source 3-D visualization system.-Design:Vis5D was created in...	GUI Data Visualization	Scientists	Open Source
VisAD VisAD VisAD is a Java component library for interactive and collaborative visualization and analysis of numerical data. It combines a flexible data model and distributed objects to support sharing of data, visualizations and user interfaces between different data sources, different computers and...	Java/Jython Library	Programmers	Open Source
VisIt VisIt VisIt is an open source interactive parallel visualization and graphical analysis tool for viewing scientific data. It can be used to visualize scalar and vector fields defined on 2D and 3D structured and unstructured meshes...	GUI/Code Data Visualisation	Engineers and Scientists	Open Source
VTK VTK The Visualization Toolkit is an open-source, freely available software system for 3D computer graphics, image processing and visualization. VTK consists of a C++ class library and several interpreted interface layers including Tcl/Tk, Java, and Python. Kitware, whose team created and continues to...	C++ Library	Programmers	Open Source
Yoix Yoix In computer programming, Yoix is a high-level, general-purpose, interpreted, dynamic programming language. The Yoix interpreter is implemented using standard Java technology without any add-on packages and requires only a Sun-compliant JVM to operate...	Programming Language	Programmers	Open Source

External links

Milestones in the History of Thematic Cartography, Statistical Graphics, and Data Visualization, An illustrated chronology of innovations by Michael Friendly and Daniel J. Denis.
Peer-reviewed definition of Data Visualization with commentaries

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Data visualization scope

Data acquisition

Data analysis

Data governance

Data management

Data mining

Data transforms

Data visualization software

Further reading

External links