DEADLINE EXTENDED TO FRIDAY 27^th March

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS – vizNET Uses of Visualization Showcase: 4th Year

All those working in the area of visualization are invited to submit work for the vizNET Uses of Visualization Showcase. The goal is to disseminate good practice and provide stimulation to users and developers of visualization in all application domains. Applications are invited from all domains in the arts, sciences and humanities. The Showcase is open to entries from around the world.

Background

The vizNET Showcase is an annual competition to highlight the very best in visualization research from around the UK and the world. The goal is disseminate best practice and provide stimulation to users and developers of visualization in all application domains.

The competition is now entering its fourth year, previous winning entries can be viewed on the vizNET website. The Showcase was won by Dr Chris Goodyer and colleagues at Leeds University in 2008, by Dr Lakshmi Sastry & her team at STFC e-Science Centre in 2007 and by Dr. Nick Holliman and his colleagues, at the University of Durham in 2006.

Prize

vizNET is offering a first prize of £1000 for the best entry. For the first time there will also be a prize of £500 awarded to the best student entry. Any student attending a taught UK university course is eligible for the student prize.

Selected entries will feature in the vizNET website. The Eurographics UK Chapter (EGUK) normally hosts a session at their annual conference, TP.CG (Theory & Practice in Computer Graphics) to showcase the winning entries.

Judging Criteria

The criteria for the Showcase centre on the usefulness (for example measured by the fresh insight gained in the application domain) and novelty (for example the application of known visualization techniques to new domains, or the application of new techniques to existing domains).

The submission awarded first prize will demonstrate innovation in the use of visualization. The judges will take into account the usefulness, novelty and the impact that the visualization has had in the application domain, in other words the fitness for purpose of the submission. A successful submission will show a significant understanding of the needs and motivations of the users.

Fundamental characteristics that the judges will expect to find in a successful submission include:

• Innovation
• Usability
• Usefulness
• Degree of finish
• Meeting declared aims
• Awareness of ‘state of the art’
• Technical ingenuity

The judges’ decision is final. They may, at their discretion, give private advice or comments to submitters of work on future development, but will not openly discuss their decisions nor respond to direct questioning on the reasons for decisions.

Rules for submission

The submission must include details of all the authors and a brief statement (no more than one A4 page) indicating the aims and status of the work Emphasise what is novel about your use of visualization, and provide evidence of the added value that is provided to the application domain. In addition, at least one the following must be included:

• Images from the application showing computer generated graphics.
• A movie file of the application in use.
• An executable to demonstrate the application.
• A reference to a persistent web site.

These materials should be supplied electronically either as file attachments in email or uploaded on the VizNET Wiki. Submissions should be received by Lakshmi Sastry (lakshmi.sastry@stfc.ac.uk) on or before Friday 13th March 2009. Submissions received after this closing time will not be considered. In addition to the electronic media, each submission should contain the name, address, telephone, FAX, email and affiliation of a contactable submitter, as well as a signed and dated statement indicating willingness to accept the rules of the competition and for vizNET to include the work, if selected, in the vizNET Visualization Showcase web site. vizNET expects the submission winner and other submissions to be published at the vizNET website.