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From: eugene@nas.nasa.gov (Eugene N. Miya)
Newsgroups: comp.graphics.visualization
Subject: Re: Out of the lab, into the classroom 2nd try
Message-ID: <1991Apr5.000214.6623@nas.nasa.gov>
Date: 5 Apr 91 00:02:14 GMT
References: <1991Apr2.202227.13796@agate.berkeley.edu> <1991Apr3.172156.3960@nas.nasa.gov>
Sender: news@nas.nasa.gov
Reply-To: eugene@wilbur.nas.nasa.gov (Eugene N. Miya)
Organization: NAS Program, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
Lines: 29

Ken wrote:
>I'm actually a disgruntled expert systems customer, but I've been
>seeing behavior in the visualization types similar to that exhibited
>by the expert systems types in their heyday.  I was pretty dismayed,
>for example, by the Visualization '90 Proceedings and the number of
>content-free papers.  It's hard to quantify, but I think you're
>definitely going need to shake out some of the under-sized apples (if
>not actually rotten) before the field can be appraised properly.  I
>understand this is all pretty new, but I'm tired of the hype.  And I'd
>certainly be cautious about doing my graduate studies in an
>ill-defined discipline like "visualization."  Or "knowledge
>engineering," for that matter.

I know what you mean.  I come from a remote sensing/image processing
background.  Similar claims were made about satellite imagery in the
60s which still have not been applied.  We still can't tell the difference
between a wheat field and a corn field from space, much less sick versus
healthly corn.  But I do think that some of the work done in these
older areas will find their way into scientific/analytic imaging.
I really don't like that word "visualization" and I read that von Neumann
didn't like it either.  I think I know a way of quantifying an
appraisal, but it would see too vicious to pull on the innocent researchers.

I used to spend hours looking at single images or stereo pairs.
We cannot always expect to get instant single view discoveries or learning.

--eugene miya, NASA Ames Research Center, eugene@orville.nas.nasa.gov
  Resident Cynic, Rock of Ages Home for Retired Hackers
  {uunet,mailrus,other gateways}!ames!eugene