Annotation in Scientific Visualization

Visualization is widely used in many domains to help understand and communicate data, to generate and test hypotheses, and to gain insight into scientific processes. Whether it is driven by data (in the form of a simulation) or informed by data (as in a narrative or visual explanation), visualization is an integral component of the research process – research that increasingly depends upon our capacity to interpret data that no longer fits neatly within a single paradigm.

While there has been enthusiastic adoption of scientific visualization across various levels of research, there is currently no system in place for vetting the credibility of these representations. Documentation of the visualization workflow and the associated reference material that informs decision-making is central to promoting transparency and ensuring credibility and reproducibility of research findings.

A goal of the VISABLI network is to explore the identification and systematic categorization of the elements, and constituent reference types that comprise a visualization, and examine approaches to integrating these features within a framework that affords downstream interrogation of visualization attributes.