Tag Archives: Human-Computer Interaction

Interactive Segmentation and Visualization for Tiny Objects in Multi-megapixel Images [CL]

Posted on by

http://arxiv.org/abs/2204.10356


We introduce an interactive image segmentation and visualization framework for identifying, inspecting, and editing tiny objects (just a few pixels wide) in large multi-megapixel high-dynamic-range (HDR) images. Detecting cosmic rays (CRs) in astronomical observations is a cumbersome workflow that requires multiple tools, so we developed an interactive toolkit that unifies model inference, HDR image visualization, segmentation mask inspection and editing into a single graphical user interface. The feature set, initially designed for astronomical data, makes this work a useful research-supporting tool for human-in-the-loop tiny-object segmentation in scientific areas like biomedicine, materials science, remote sensing, etc., as well as computer vision. Our interface features mouse-controlled, synchronized, dual-window visualization of the image and the segmentation mask, a critical feature for locating tiny objects in multi-megapixel images. The browser-based tool can be readily hosted on the web to provide multi-user access and GPU acceleration for any device. The toolkit can also be used as a high-precision annotation tool, or adapted as the frontend for an interactive machine learning framework. Our open-source dataset, CR detection model, and visualization toolkit are available at https://github.com/cy-xu/cosmic-conn.

Read this paper on arXiv…

C. Xu, B. Dong, N. Stier, et. al.
Mon, 25 Apr 22
32/36

Comments: 6 pages, 4 figures. Accepted by CVPR 2022 Demo Program

Web accessibility trends and implementation in dynamic web applications [CL]

Posted on by

http://arxiv.org/abs/2202.00777


The NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS), a critical research service for the astrophysics community, strives to provide the most accessible and inclusive environment for the discovery and exploration of the astronomical literature. Part of this goal involves creating a digital platform that can accommodate everybody, including those with disabilities that would benefit from alternative ways to present the information provided by the website. NASA ADS follows the official Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) standard for ensuring accessibility of all its applications, striving to exceed this standard where possible. Through the use of both internal audits and external expert review based on these guidelines, we have identified many areas for improving accessibility in our current web application, and have implemented a number of updates to the UI as a result of this. We present an overview of some current web accessibility trends, discuss our experience incorporating these trends in our web application, and discuss the lessons learned and recommendations for future projects.

Read this paper on arXiv…

T. Hostetler, S. Chen, S. Blanco-Cuaresma, et. al.
Thu, 3 Feb 22
18/56

Comments: Submitted to ADASS XXXI (2021)

VIRUP : The Virtual Reality Universe Project [IMA]

Posted on by

http://arxiv.org/abs/2110.04308


VIRUP is a new C++ open source software that provides an interactive virtual reality environment to navigate through large scientific astrophysical datasets obtained from both observations and simulations. It is tailored to visualize terabytes of data, rendering at 90 frames per second in order to ensure an optimal immersion experience. While VIRUP has initially been designed to work with gaming virtual reality headsets, it supports different modern immersive systems like 3D screens, 180 deg. domes or 360 deg. panorama. VIRUP is scriptable thanks to the Python language, a feature that allows to immerse visitors through pre-selected scenes or to pre-render sequences to create movies. A companion video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJJXbcf8kxA) to the last SDSS 2020 release as well as a 21 minute long documentary, The Archaeology of Light, https://go.epfl.ch/ArchaeologyofLight have been both 100% produced using VIRUP.

Read this paper on arXiv…

F. Cabot, Y. Revaz, J. Kneib, et. al.
Tue, 12 Oct 21
18/73

Comments: 9 pages, 8 figures. Webpage:this http URL, link to “The Archaeology of Light”: this https URL

AstronomicAL: An interactive dashboard for visualisation, integration and classification of data using Active Learning [IMA]

Posted on by

http://arxiv.org/abs/2109.05207


AstronomicAL is a human-in-the-loop interactive labelling and training dashboard that allows users to create reliable datasets and robust classifiers using active learning. This technique prioritises data that offer high information gain, leading to improved performance using substantially less data. The system allows users to visualise and integrate data from different sources and deal with incorrect or missing labels and imbalanced class sizes. AstronomicAL enables experts to visualise domain-specific plots and key information relating both to broader context and details of a point of interest drawn from a variety of data sources, ensuring reliable labels. In addition, AstronomicAL provides functionality to explore all aspects of the training process, including custom models and query strategies. This makes the software a tool for experimenting with both domain-specific classifications and more general-purpose machine learning strategies. We illustrate using the system with an astronomical dataset due to the field’s immediate need; however, AstronomicAL has been designed for datasets from any discipline. Finally, by exporting a simple configuration file, entire layouts, models, and assigned labels can be shared with the community. This allows for complete transparency and ensures that the process of reproducing results is effortless

Read this paper on arXiv…

G. Stevens, S. Fotopoulou, M. Bremer, et. al.
Tue, 14 Sep 21
49/88

Comments: 7 pages, 4 figures, Journal of Open Source Software

Visualization in Astrophysics: Developing New Methods, Discovering Our Universe, and Educating the Earth [IMA]

Posted on by

http://arxiv.org/abs/2106.00152


We present a state-of-the-art report on visualization in astrophysics. We survey representative papers from both astrophysics and visualization and provide a taxonomy of existing approaches based on data analysis tasks. The approaches are classified based on five categories: data wrangling, data exploration, feature identification, object reconstruction, as well as education and outreach. Our unique contribution is to combine the diverse viewpoints from both astronomers and visualization experts to identify challenges and opportunities for visualization in astrophysics. The main goal is to provide a reference point to bring modern data analysis and visualization techniques to the rich datasets in astrophysics.

Read this paper on arXiv…

F. Lan, M. Young, L. Anderson, et. al.
Wed, 2 Jun 21
28/48

Comments: N/A

Interactive Visualization of Atmospheric Effects for Celestial Bodies [CL]

Posted on by

http://arxiv.org/abs/2010.03534


We present an atmospheric model tailored for the interactive visualization of planetary surfaces. As the exploration of the solar system is progressing with increasingly accurate missions and instruments, the faithful visualization of planetary environments is gaining increasing interest in space research, mission planning, and science communication and education. Atmospheric effects are crucial in data analysis and to provide contextual information for planetary data. Our model correctly accounts for the non-linear path of the light inside the atmosphere (in Earth’s case), the light absorption effects by molecules and dust particles, such as the ozone layer and the Martian dust, and a wavelength-dependent phase function for Mie scattering. The mode focuses on interactivity, versatility, and customization, and a comprehensive set of interactive controls make it possible to adapt its appearance dynamically. We demonstrate our results using Earth and Mars as examples. However, it can be readily adapted for the exploration of other atmospheres found on, for example, of exoplanets. For Earth’s atmosphere, we visually compare our results with pictures taken from the International Space Station and against the CIE clear sky model. The Martian atmosphere is reproduced based on available scientific data, feedback from domain experts, and is compared to images taken by the Curiosity rover. The work presented here has been implemented in the OpenSpace system, which enables interactive parameter setting and real-time feedback visualization targeting presentations in a wide range of environments, from immersive dome theaters to virtual reality headsets.

Read this paper on arXiv…

J. Costa, A. Bock, C. Emmart, et. al.
Thu, 8 Oct 20
18/54

Comments: To appear at IEEE VIS 2020

Walking Through an Exploded Star: Rendering Supernova Remnant Cassiopeia A into Virtual Reality [IMA]

Posted on by

http://arxiv.org/abs/1812.06237


NASA and other astrophysical data of the Cassiopeia A supernova remnant have been rendered into a three-dimensional virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) program, the first of its kind. This data-driven experience of a supernova remnant allows viewers to walk inside the leftovers from the explosion of a massive star, select the parts of the supernova remnant to engage with, and access descriptive texts on what the materials are. The basis of this program is a unique 3D model of the 340-year old remains of a stellar explosion, made by combining data from the NASA Chandra X-ray Observatory, Spitzer Space Telescope, and ground-based facilities. A collaboration between the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and Brown University allowed the 3D astronomical data collected on Cassiopeia A to be featured in the VR/AR program, which is an innovation in digital technologies with public, education, and research-based impacts.

Read this paper on arXiv…

K. Arcand, E. Jiang, S. Price, et. al.
Tue, 18 Dec 18
80/91

Comments: 20 pages, 6 figures

Virtual Astronaut for Scientific Visualization – A Prototype for Santa Maria Crater on Mars [IMA]

Posted on by

http://arxiv.org/abs/1711.02629


To support scientific visualization of multiple-mission data from Mars, the Virtual Astronaut (VA) creates an interactive virtual 3D environment built on the Unity3D Game Engine. A prototype study was conducted based on orbital and Opportunity Rover data covering Santa Maria Crater in Meridiani Planum on Mars. The VA at Santa Maria provides dynamic visual representations of the imaging, compositional, and mineralogical information. The VA lets one navigate through the scene and provides geomorphic and geologic contexts for the rover operations. User interactions include in-situ observations visualization, feature measurement, and an animation control of rover drives. This paper covers our approach and implementation of the VA system. A brief summary of the prototype system functions and user feedback is also covered. Based on external review and comments by the science community, the prototype at Santa Maria has proven the VA to be an effective tool for virtual geovisual analysis.

Read this paper on arXiv…

J. Wang, K. Bennett and E. Guinness
Wed, 8 Nov 17
5/84

Comments: 20 pages, 11 figures

Using Contour Trees in the Analysis and Visualization of Radio Astronomy Data Cubes [IMA]

Posted on by

http://arxiv.org/abs/1704.04561


The current generation of radio and millimeter telescopes, particularly the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA), offers enormous advances in observing capabilities. While these advances represent an unprecedented opportunity to advance scientific understanding, the increased complexity in the spatial and spectral structure of even a single spectral line is hard to interpret. The complexity present in current ALMA data cubes therefore challenges not only the existing tools for fundamental analysis of these datasets, but also users’ ability to explore and visualize their data. We have performed a feasibility study for applying forms of topological data analysis and visualization never before tested by the ALMA community. Through contour tree-based data analysis, we seek to improve upon existing data cube analysis and visualization workflows, in the forms of improved accuracy and speed in extracting features. In this paper, we review our design process in building effective analysis and visualization capabilities for the astrophysicist users. We summarize effective design practices, in particular, we identify domain-specific needs of simplicity, integrability and reproducibility, in order to best target and service the large astrophysics community.

Read this paper on arXiv…

P. Rosen, B. Wang, A. Seth, et. al.
Tue, 18 Apr 17
38/40

Comments: N/A

Managing the Public to Manage Data: Citizen Science and Astronomy [IMA]

Posted on by

http://arxiv.org/abs/1703.00037


Citizen science projects recruit members of the public as volunteers to process and produce datasets. These datasets must win the trust of the scientific community. The task of securing credibility involves, in part, applying standard scientific procedures to clean these datasets. However, effective management of volunteer behavior also makes a significant contribution to enhancing data quality. Through a case study of Galaxy Zoo, a citizen science project set up to generate datasets based on volunteer classifications of galaxy morphologies, this paper explores how those involved in running the project manage volunteers. The paper focuses on how methods for crediting volunteer contributions motivate volunteers to provide higher quality contributions and to behave in a way that better corresponds to statistical assumptions made when combining volunteer contributions into datasets. These methods have made a significant contribution to the success of the project in securing trust in these datasets, which have been well used by other scientists. Implications for practice are then presented for citizen science projects, providing a list of considerations to guide choices regarding how to credit volunteer contributions to improve the quality and trustworthiness of citizen science-produced datasets.

Read this paper on arXiv…

P. Darch
Thu, 2 Mar 17
4/44

Comments: 16 pages, 0 figures, published in International Journal of Digital Curation

Knowledge Discovery Framework for the Virtual Observatory [IMA]

Posted on by

http://arxiv.org/abs/1502.06501


We describe a framework that allows a scientist-user to easily query for information across all Virtual Observatory (VO) repositories and pull it back for analysis. This framework hides the gory details of meta-data remediation and data formatting from the user, allowing them to get on with search, retrieval and analysis of VO data as if they were drawn from a single source using a science based terminology rather than a data-centric one.

Read this paper on arXiv…

B. Thomas, E. Shaya, Z. Huang, et. al.
Tue, 24 Feb 15
16/67

Comments: ADASS XVI ASP Conference Series, Vol. 376, proceedings of the conference held 15-18 October 2006 in Tucson, Arizona, USA. Edited by Richard A. Shaw, Frank Hill and David J. Bell., p.563

A User Interface for Semantically Oriented Data Mining of Astronomy Repositories [IMA]

Posted on by

http://arxiv.org/abs/1502.06492


We present a user-friendly, but powerful interface for the data mining of scientific repositories. We present the tool in use with actual astronomy data and show how it may be used to achieve many different types of powerful semantic queries. The tool itself hides the gory details of query formulation, and data retrieval from the user, and allows the user to create workflows which may be used to transform the data into a convenient form.

Read this paper on arXiv…

B. Thomas and E. Shaya
Tue, 24 Feb 15
23/67

Comments: ADASS ASP Conference Series, Vol. 394, Proceedings of the conference held 23-26 September, 2007, in Kensington Town Hall, London, United Kingdom. Edited by Robert W. Argyle, Peter S. Bunclark, and James R. Lewis., p.361

Are tiled display walls needed for astronomy? [IMA]

Posted on by

http://arxiv.org/abs/1407.4881


Clustering commodity displays into a Tiled Display Wall (TDW) provides a cost-effective way to create an extremely high resolution display, capable of approaching the image sizes now gen- erated by modern astronomical instruments. Astronomers face the challenge of inspecting single large images, many similar images simultaneously, and heterogeneous but related content. Many research institutions have constructed TDWs on the basis that they will improve the scientific outcomes of astronomical imagery. We test this concept by presenting sample images to astronomers and non- astronomers using a standard desktop display (SDD) and a TDW. These samples include standard English words, wide field galaxy surveys and nebulae mosaics from the Hubble telescope. These experiments show that TDWs provide a better environment for searching for small targets in large images than SDDs. It also shows that astronomers tend to be better at searching images for targets than non-astronomers, both groups are generally better when employing physical navigation as opposed to virtual navigation, and that the combination of two non-astronomers using a TDW rivals the experience of a single astronomer. However, there is also a large distribution in aptitude amongst the participants and the nature of the content also plays a significant role is success.

Read this paper on arXiv…

B. Meade, C. Fluke, S. Manos, et. al.
Mon, 21 Jul 14
34/55

Comments: 19 pages, 15 figures, accepted for publication in PASA (Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia)

Examining Perceptions of Astronomy Images Across Mobile Platforms [CL]

Posted on by

http://arxiv.org/abs/1403.5802


Modern society has led many people to become consumers of data unlike previous generations. How this shift in the way information is communicated and received – including in areas of science – and affects perception and comprehension is still an open question. This study examined one aspect of this digital age: perceptions of astronomical images and their labels, on mobile platforms. Participants were n = 2183 respondents to an online survey, and two focus groups (n = 12 astrophysicists; n = 11 lay public). Online participants were randomly assigned to 1 of 12 images, and compared two label formats. Focus groups compared mobile devices and label formats. Results indicated that the size and quality of the images on the mobile devices affected label comprehension and engagement. The question label format was significantly preferred to the fun fact. Results are discussed in terms of effective science communication using technology.

Read this paper on arXiv…

L. Smith, K. Arcand, J. Smith, et. al.
Tue, 25 Mar 14
51/79