arXiv subjects

Daniel Weiskopf

Publications and source records attributed to Daniel Weiskopf.

64 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

arXiv2019

Overlap-free Drawing of Generalized Pythagoras Trees for Hierarchy Visualization

Generalized Pythagoras trees were developed for visualizing hierarchical data, producing organic, fractal-like representations. However, the drawback of the original layout algorithm is visual overlap of tree branches. To avoid such overlap, we introduce an adapted drawing algorithm using ellipses instead of circles to recursively place tree nodes representing the subhierarchies. Our technique is demonstrated by resolving overlap in diverse real-world and generated datasets, while comparing the results to the original approach.

cs.GR↗

arXiv2019

Task Classification Model for Visual Fixation, Exploration, and Search

Yarbus' claim to decode the observer's task from eye movements has received mixed reactions. In this paper, we have supported the hypothesis that it is possible to decode the task. We conducted an exploratory analysis on the dataset by projecting features and data points into a scatter plot to visualize the nuance properties for each task. Following this analysis, we eliminated highly correlated features before training an SVM and Ada Boosting classifier to predict the tasks from this filtered eye movements data. We achieve an accuracy of 95.4% on this task classification problem and hence, support the hypothesis that task classification is possible from a user's eye movement data.

cs.LG↗

arXiv2019

Spectral Visualization Sharpening

In this paper, we propose a perceptually-guided visualization sharpening technique. We analyze the spectral behavior of an established comprehensive perceptual model to arrive at our approximated model based on an adapted weighting of the bandpass images from a Gaussian pyramid. The main benefit of this approximated model is its controllability and predictability for sharpening color-mapped visualizations. Our method can be integrated into any visualization tool as it adopts generic image-based post-processing, and it is intuitive and easy to use as viewing distance is the only parameter. Using highly diverse datasets, we show the usefulness of our method across a wide range of typical visualizations.

cs.GR↗

arXiv2019

PerfVis: Pervasive Visualization in Immersive AugmentedReality for Performance Awareness

Developers are usually unaware of the impact of code changes to the performance of software systems. Although developers can analyze the performance of a system by executing, for instance, a performance test to compare the performance of two consecutive versions of the system, changing from a programming task to a testing task would disrupt the development flow. In this paper, we propose the use of a city visualization that dynamically provides developers with a pervasive view of the continuous performance of a system. We use an immersive augmented reality device (Microsoft HoloLens) to display our visualization and extend the integrated development environment on a computer screen to use the physical space. We report on technical details of the design and implementation of our visualization tool, and discuss early feedback that we collected of its usability. Our investigation explores a new visual metaphor to support the exploration and analysis of possibly very large and multidimensional performance data. Our initial result indicates that the city metaphor can be adequate to analyze dynamic performance data on a large and non-trivial software system.

cs.HC↗

arXiv2013

Circular orbits in the extreme Reissner-Nordstrøm dihole metric

We study the motion of neutral test particles in the gravitational field of two charged black holes described by the extreme Reissner-Nordstrøm dihole metric where the masses and charges of the black holes are chosen such that the gravitational attraction is compensated by the electrostatic repulsion. We investigate circular orbits in the equatorial plane between the two black holes with equal masses as well as the case of circular orbits outside this symmetry plane. We show that the first case reduces to an effective two-body problem with a behavior similar to a system described by the Reissner-Nordstrøm spacetime. The main focus is directed to the second case with circular orbits outside the equatorial plane.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2012

Interactive Visualization and Simulation of Astronomical Nebulae

Interactive visualization and simulation of astrophysical phenomena help astronomers and enable digital planetariums and television documentaries to take their spectators on a journey into deep space to explore the astronomical wonders of our universe in 3D.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2011

Evaluation of a Bundling Technique for Parallel Coordinates

We describe a technique for bundled curve representations in parallel-coordinates plots and present a controlled user study evaluating their effectiveness. Replacing the traditional C^0 polygonal lines by C^1 continuous piecewise Bezier curves makes it easier to visually trace data points through each coordinate axis. The resulting Bezier curves can then be bundled to visualize data with given cluster structures. Curve bundles are efficient to compute, provide visual separation between data clusters, reduce visual clutter, and present a clearer overview of the dataset. A controlled user study with 14 participants confirmed the effectiveness of curve bundling for parallel-coordinates visualization: 1) compared to polygonal lines, it is equally capable of revealing correlations between neighboring data attributes; 2) its geometric cues can be effective in displaying cluster information. For some datasets curve bundling allows the color perceptual channel to be applied to other data attributes, while for complex cluster patterns, bundling and color can represent clustering far more clearly than either alone.

cs.GR↗

arXiv2011

Detailed study of null and time-like geodesics in the Alcubierre Warp spacetime

The Alcubierre warp spacetime yields a fascinating chance for comfortable interstellar travel between arbitrary distant places without the time dilation effect as in special relativistic flights. Even though the warp spacetime needs exotic matter for its construction and is thus far from being physically feasible, it offers a rich playground for studying geodesics in the general theory of relativity. This paper is addressed to graduate students who have finished a first course in general relativity to give them a deeper inside in the calculation of non-affinely parametrized null and time-like geodesics and a straightforward approach to determine the gravitational lensing effect due to curved spacetime by means of the Jacobi equation. Both topics are necessary for a thorough discussion of the visual effects as observed by a traveller inside the warp bubble or a person looking from outside. The visual effects of the traveller can be reproduced with an interactive Java application.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2011

Time-Dependent 2-D Vector Field Topology: An Approach Inspired by Lagrangian Coherent Structures

This paper presents an approach to a time-dependent variant of the concept of vector field topology for 2-D vector fields. Vector field topology is defined for steady vector fields and aims at discriminating the domain of a vector field into regions of qualitatively different behaviour. The presented approach represents a generalization for saddle-type critical points and their separatrices to unsteady vector fields based on generalized streak lines, with the classical vector field topology as its special case for steady vector fields. The concept is closely related to that of Lagrangian coherent structures obtained as ridges in the finite-time Lyapunov exponent field. The proposed approach is evaluated on both 2-D time-dependent synthetic and vector fields from computational fluid dynamics.

cs.GR↗

arXiv2010

Finding and Classifying Critical Points of 2D Vector Fields: A Cell-Oriented Approach Using Group Theory

We present a novel approach to finding critical points in cell-wise barycentrically or bilinearly interpolated vector fields on surfaces. The Poincar\e index of the critical points is determined by investigating the qualitative behavior of 0-level sets of the interpolants of the vector field components in parameter space using precomputed combinatorial results, thus avoiding the computation of the Jacobian of the vector field at the critical points in order to determine its index. The locations of the critical points within a cell are determined analytically to achieve accurate results. This approach leads to a correct treatment of cases with two first-order critical points or one second-order critical point of bilinearly interpolated vector fields within one cell, which would be missed by examining the linearized field only. We show that for the considered interpolation schemes determining the index of a critical point can be seen as a coloring problem of cell edges. A complete classification of all possible colorings in terms of the types and number of critical points yielded by each coloring is given using computational group theory. We present an efficient algorithm that makes use of these precomputed classifications in order to find and classify critical points in a cell-by-cell fashion. Issues of numerical stability, construction of the topological skeleton, topological simplification, and the statistics of the different types of critical points are also discussed.

cs.GR↗