COMP5048: Information Visualisation S2/2009

Time/Location:

Thursday 3-5pm, SIT Lab 117

Unit coordinator:

Associate Professor Seok-Hee Hong

Lecturers:

Professor Peter Eades (Lecturer in charge)

Associate Professor Seok-Hee Hong

Dr. Tony Huang

Contact:

peter at it.usyd.edu.au

Unit Specification

Information Visualisation aims to make good pictures of abstract information, such as stock prices, family trees, and software design diagrams. Well designed pictures can convey this information rapidly and effectively. The research challenge for Information Visualisation is to design and implement new algorithms that produce such pictures.

Applications include visualisation of biological data, social networks, and software systems.

This unit provides basic concepts, techniques and fundamental algorithms to create good visualisations of abstract information. Further, it also provides opportunities for academic research and developing new methods for information visualisation.

Assumed Knowledge

It is assumed that students have basic knowledge of data structures, as well as programming skills.

USYD Policies

You are required to carefully read the USYD policies on Academic Honesty, Special Consideration due to illness and misadventure, and Late Submissions.

Lecture Timetable (subject to change)

Week	Date	Topic	Lecturer	Comments
1	Thursday, 30 July 2009	Introduction	Peter	Nice pictures; course organisation
2	Thursday, 6 August 2009	Trees	Peter	Reingold-Tilford; radial; HV; tip-over
3	Thursday, 13 August 2009	Force directed	Peter	Springs; MDS; eigenvectors
4	Thursday, 20 August 2009	Layered graphs	Peter	Layering; feedback arc set; crossings
5	Thursday, 27 August 2009	Layered graphs; clustered graphs	Peter	Crossings; edge straightening
6	Thursday, 3 September 2009	Network analysis	Seok-Hee	Visual analytics; Valacon
7	Thursday, 10 September 2009	Planarity	Peter	Planarity algorithm; planarisation; graph theory
8	Thursday, 17 September 2009	Perception; Evaluation	Tony	Visual perception and cognition models; intro to evaluation methods
9	Thursday, 24 September 2009	Evaluation	Tony	Experiment design and analysis; several experiments examples
	Thursday, 1 October 2009	Mid-term break
10	Thursday, 8 October 2009	Student presentations	Tony
11	Thursday, 15 October 2009	Student presentations	Tony
12	Thursday, 22 October 2009	Student presentations	Tony
13	Thursday, 29 October 2009	Wrap up lecture	Peter	Research directions

Assessment

TBA

Previous course offerings

2008

2007