THEME:

TG—007 will address visualization as a human activity supported by technology, it will pay special attention to massive datasets involving various media and multi-media. Visualization is a means by which humans make sense of complex multi-media data in varied military datasets. The group will consider visualization technologies such as, search engines, algorithmic processes and display devices and techniques, but only in a relation to how they help humans to perform their tasks effectively. It will emphasize the human requirements in using computational systems to ensure that the right information from massive datasets is presented in the right form, at the right place and at the right time.

JUSTIFICATION:

Military visualization problems arise constantly from the ever-increasing volume, complexity and dynamic nature of multi-media and other massive datasets of interest. These are frequently beyond the capability of current presentation techniques to display effectively for human understanding and action. Effective visualization for the military will require the continuous development of new techniques — tools and methods — that will allow closer coupling and system level integration of the human's capabilities into the overall human-computer system.

Anticipated military benefits are:

• Greatly improved information accessibility, operational, filtration, extraction, and understanding.
• Significant improvements of: Simulation, Decision Support and Analysis systems.
• Support for joint NATO activities through better interoperation and communication, particularly in PFP activities.
• Promoting appropriate use of advanced visualization of knowledge, information and data taken from massive and varied datasets, in operational applications and systems (Outreach).
• Bridging the "cultural gap" between technologists in the fields of knowledge discovery and information- and data visualization and the military users of the developed technologies.

TOPICS TO BE COVERED :

• Accessing, interpreting, charting and processing multimedia data
• Multi-media visualization for Electronic Warfare ambiguity analysis
• Text summarization and compression
• Clustering ‘reports’ for access and attention
• Knowledge Management and Knowledge Discovery (Includes data mining, data selection, visualization tools)
• Visual human-machine interface in text/speech and imagery
• Battlefield data fusion
• Visualizing geometric data
• Technology overview and review (Includes forecasting what military needs will and will not be met in Private and University sectors).

This group will use the proposed symposium entitled ‘Multi-media Visualization in Massive Military Datasets’ to ‘kick-start’ its programme of work.

CHAIRMAN/DIRECTOR/AUTHOR: Prof. M. VARGA (UK)

MEMBERS/SPEAKERS: L. RASMUSSEN (DK) L. GARCIA (SP) A. KASTER (GE)

IST-021

September 99