论文标题
一种新型的树木可视化,以指导多维拓扑层次结构的交互式探索
A Novel Tree Visualization to Guide Interactive Exploration of Multi-dimensional Topological Hierarchies
论文作者
论文摘要
了解输出变量对多维输入的响应是许多数据探索努力的核心。基于拓扑的方法,尤其是莫尔斯理论和持久同源性,为研究这种关系提供了有用的框架,因为感兴趣的现象通常自然地看作是基本特征。 Morse-Male复合体通过将标量函数的域分配到分段单调区域来捕获广泛的特征,而持久的同源性则提供了一种以不同简化尺度研究这些特征的方法。先前的作品展示了如何计算这种表示形式及其实用性,以深入了解多维数据。但是,对数据的多尺度性质的探索仅限于从区域计数图中选择单个简化阈值。在本文中,我们提出了一种新颖的树木可视化,可简明概述拓扑特征的整个层次结构。树的结构从所有分区的分布,大小和稳定性方面提供了初始见解。我们使用回归分析在每个分区中拟合线性模型,并制定局部和相对措施,以进一步评估每个分区的独特性和重要性,尤其是在特征层次结构中的父母/子女的尊重。当我们使用颜色编码这样的度量时,树的表现性变得显而易见,并且布局允许在探索过程中对特征选择的前所未有的控制水平。例如,从层次结构的多个量表中选择功能可以实现更细微的探索。最后,我们使用来自多个科学领域的示例来证明我们的方法。
Understanding the response of an output variable to multi-dimensional inputs lies at the heart of many data exploration endeavours. Topology-based methods, in particular Morse theory and persistent homology, provide a useful framework for studying this relationship, as phenomena of interest often appear naturally as fundamental features. The Morse-Smale complex captures a wide range of features by partitioning the domain of a scalar function into piecewise monotonic regions, while persistent homology provides a means to study these features at different scales of simplification. Previous works demonstrated how to compute such a representation and its usefulness to gain insight into multi-dimensional data. However, exploration of the multi-scale nature of the data was limited to selecting a single simplification threshold from a plot of region count. In this paper, we present a novel tree visualization that provides a concise overview of the entire hierarchy of topological features. The structure of the tree provides initial insights in terms of the distribution, size, and stability of all partitions. We use regression analysis to fit linear models in each partition, and develop local and relative measures to further assess uniqueness and the importance of each partition, especially with respect parents/children in the feature hierarchy. The expressiveness of the tree visualization becomes apparent when we encode such measures using colors, and the layout allows an unprecedented level of control over feature selection during exploration. For instance, selecting features from multiple scales of the hierarchy enables a more nuanced exploration. Finally, we demonstrate our approach using examples from several scientific domains.