Exploring 4D Image Sets of Early Heart Development Using Gesture and an Immersive, Spatial Operating Environment

Scientists today can collect more data than they can perceive using traditional visualization methods. New technologies and sensors allow researchers to gather dynamic, complex multidimensional datasets-all of which must be carefully studied to reveal hidden patterns and narratives. The authors used an immersive platform to design a new visualization for real-time, intuitive spatial manipulations of time-based volumetric datasets via a wand-based gestural interface. The resulting work resolves microscopic tissue structures at a human scale in a room-based pixel space, facilitating research, discovery and in-person teaching and collaboration.