University launches annual Visualization Development Competition
Published Dec 12, 2011Texas A&M University at Qatar launched its 4thannual Visualization Development Competition (VDC) at an introductory session on 12 Dec. Representatives from local industry, academia and government attended the session, which outlined the parameters of the competition, called for proposals and offered attendees a demonstration of the 2011 competition projects.
[caption id="attachment_3309" align="alignright" width="420" caption="Ali Sheharyar demonstrating the capabilities of the Immersive Visualization Facility."]
The VDC invites researchers across Qatar to submit proposals to develop research projects using the University’s Immersive Visualization Facility (IVF). The IVF utilizes scientific visualization to create 3D images and graphics that aid in the analysis of complex numerical representation. This technology helps scientists see data sets in new ways so that they can find patterns or relationships and communicate their data to others. Viewers feel completely immersed in the experience, and all images are displayed in 3D with the use of special goggles.
VDC projects are developed over three months in the IVF with the assistance of Texas A&M at Qatar’s visualization expert. Through offering this technological resource to researchers outside the University, Texas A&M at Qatar seeks to actively share its expertise for the betterment of the State of Qatar and its community.
Ali Sheharyar, senior lead software applications developer at the University, commented on the unique benefits of the competition saying, "Visualization helps researchers make sense of a flood of data. It takes advantage of the natural abilities of the human vision system, giving researchers the ability to extract important information hidden within data."
Developed projects in 2011 included "3D Visualization of Demographic Data in Qatar," co-submitted by Qatar Statistics Authority and Qatar University, and "3D Visualization of Looping, Tangling and Knot Formation of Surgical Threads," submitted by Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar and Texas A&M at Qatar.