Data Visualization Park

Abstract / Summary: The University of North Carolina Data Visualization

Park enables avatars to interact with demographic data about North Carolina,

the United States and the world.

Visitors can trigger data transmitters that have been loaded with spreadsheet

data available from the U.S. Census Bureau and United Nations. The data are

displayed on large maps that can be walked through. This affords a fully three

dimensional experience of the information.

Description: This project is inspired by the work of Edward Tufte who has been

called the “Leonardo da Vinci of data” by the New York Times. One of Tufte’s

works is called “Escaping Flatland,” and I wanted to escape two dimensional

limitations by representing data three dimensionally within Second Life. Despite

the fact that this multi-user virtual environment is displayed on a two

dimensional computer screen, avatarian presence allows the user to move among

objects in a way that simulates physical reality.

Another inspiration for this project was a request from Tony O’Driscoll who teaches

business management at Duke University. Early last year Tony asked me to find

examples of data visualization in Second Life he could show his students. The task

proved to be much more difficult than I had anticipated. There were a few

examples such as the NOAA weather map, but I knew that much more could be

accomplished.

A few criteria for data presentation are essential in my mind. The data must be

easily imported into Second Life requiring very little modification or manipulation

by the designer. It does not necessarily need to be real time or automatic, but it

does need to be a simple process. The data transmitters in my project can be

loaded in a matter of seconds using spreadsheet data available in that format from

the U.S. Census Bureau or the United Nations data yearbook.

Another requirement is that the visiting avatar can experience three dimensionally

the data. The data prims in the Data Visualization Park are phantom allowing the

user to navigate easily through and among them. When the user triggers a data

transmitter, the data prims grow in an almost organic way to populate a map large

enough to study and explore in a peripatetic manner.

This project is an example of the unique way multi-user virtual environments can

enable 3-D data visualization. The potential educational uses of such data

visualization are great. The efficacy and effectiveness of such displays should be

studied and analyzed.

Location (SLurl): http://slurl.com/secondlife/UNC%20IV/141/84/37