The State-of-the-Art of Set Visualization

Sets comprise a generic data model that has been used in a variety of data analysis problems. Such problems involve analysing and visualizing set relations between multiple sets defined over the same collection of elements. However, visualizing sets is a non-trivial problem due to the large number of possible relations between them. We provide a systematic overview of state-of-the-art techniques for visualizing different kinds of set relations. We classify these techniques into six main categories according to the visual representations they use and the tasks they support. We compare the categories to provide guidance for choosing an appropriate technique for a given problem. Finally, we identify challenges in this area that need further research and propose possible directions to address these challenges. Further resources on set visualization are available at http://www.setviz.net

Exploration of User Groups in VEXUS

We introduce VEXUS, an interactive visualization framework for exploring user data to fulfill tasks such as finding a set of experts, forming discussion groups and analyzing collective behaviors. User data is characterized by a combination of demographics like age and occupation, and actions such as rating a movie, writing a paper, following a medical treatment or buying groceries. The ubiquity of user data requires tools that help explorers, be they specialists or novice users, acquire new insights. VEXUS lets explorers interact with user data via visual primitives and builds an exploration profile to recommend the next exploration steps. VEXUS combines state-of-the-art visualization techniques with appropriate indexing of user data to provide fast and relevant exploration

Learning the Roots of Visual Domain Shift

In this paper we focus on the spatial nature of visual domain shift, attempting to learn where domain adaptation originates in each given image of the source and target set. We borrow concepts and techniques from the CNN visualization literature, and learn domainnes maps able to localize the degree of domain specificity in images. We derive from these maps features related to different domainnes levels, and we show that by considering them as a preprocessing step for a domain adaptation algorithm, the final classification performance is strongly improved. Combined with the whole image representation, these features provide state of the art results on the Office dataset.Comment: Extended Abstrac

Explicit Building Block Multiobjective Evolutionary Computation: Methods and Applications

This dissertation presents principles, techniques, and performance of evolutionary computation optimization methods. Concentration is on concepts, design formulation, and prescription for multiobjective problem solving and explicit building block (BB) multiobjective evolutionary algorithms (MOEAs). Current state-of-the-art explicit BB MOEAs are addressed in the innovative design, execution, and testing of a new multiobjective explicit BB MOEA. Evolutionary computation concepts examined are algorithm convergence, population diversity and sizing, genotype and phenotype partitioning, archiving, BB concepts, parallel evolutionary algorithm (EA) models, robustness, visualization of evolutionary process, and performance in terms of effectiveness and efficiency. The main result of this research is the development of a more robust algorithm where MOEA concepts are implicitly employed. Testing shows that the new MOEA can be more effective and efficient than previous state-of-the-art explicit BB MOEAs for selected test suite multiobjective optimization problems (MOPs) and U.S. Air Force applications. Other contributions include the extension of explicit BB definitions to clarify the meanings for good single and multiobjective BBs. A new visualization technique is developed for viewing genotype, phenotype, and the evolutionary process in finding Pareto front vectors while tracking the size of the BBs. The visualization technique is the result of a BB tracing mechanism integrated into the new MOEA that enables one to determine the required BB sizes and assign an approximation epistasis level for solving a particular problem. The culmination of this research is explicit BB state-of-the-art MOEA technology based on the MOEA design, BB classifier type assessment, solution evolution visualization, and insight into MOEA test metric validation and usage as applied to test suite, deception, bioinformatics, unmanned vehicle flight pattern, and digital symbol set design MOPs