Graphics Reference
In-Depth Information
and products, by designing novel interfaces that
allow the students interact with physical environ-
ment where they learn through playing.
Interactive information graphics are considered
a tool of choice as an aid in teaching and learn-
ing. They combine text, photos, audios, videos,
charts, maps, graphs, and illustrations, with such
features as multimodality, interactivity, and hy-
pertext (point-and-click method to link topics
and graphics), and this makes the main difference
between a print graphic and online representation.
Interactive graphics focus on a story or topic, and
online reader may choose their own navigation
path through the information graphics, their own
pace, and order. Students interact with icons,
the small graphic elements on the screen of the
computer that carry information. The simple, less
complicated icons that impose lesser cognitive
load are understood easier, faster, and thus picked
up first (Lang, 2006). The active ways of learning
go through picturing various kinds of data in a
quick, simple way.
Interactive information graphics make an es-
sential part of journalism, information visualiza-
tion, and information design. They are important
in conveying information in education, online
journalism, business management, and techni-
cal writing. Visualization and semantic analysis
supports understanding of a social network, for
example it combines text-based and image-based
data analysis with the occurrences search. Visual
instruction strategies and visual learning environ-
ments lower cognitive load and transform tradi-
tional courses to interactive modes. Instructors
visualize on-site and online curricular content
for e-learning, assist in staff development, work
as digital technology developers and consultants,
educational game designers, instructional strate-
gists (using data mining), developers and editors
of motion graphics and visuals. Visualization
techniques help them integrate technology into
curriculum and create web-based multimedia
instructional materials, and maximize efficiency
and appeal of learning and teaching.
Visualization supports learning abstract
dynamic concepts, amplifies understanding
and retention, and also helps us generate ideas
and improve metacognitive skills that enhance
awareness and understanding of our own thought
processes. Choosing adequate visualization tools
helps us to select efficient strategies for instruc-
tion or learning. Visualization may also increase
our problem solving ability. It was demonstrated
in many instances; the most cited example is the
renowned story of Dr. Snow who found the source
of a cholera epidemic in London (see description
below, in section 5.5).
Mutual understanding and interest go even bet-
ter when simple pictures are unfolding in front of
the participants during a discourse, for example,
made on the back of a napkin. In his topic “The
Back of the Napkin: Solving Problems and Selling
Ideas with Pictures” Dan Roam (2008) explains
how to use visual thinking while working on com-
plex business ideas and provides the reader with
tools and rules to facilitate picture making. The
author believes that a simple drawing on a napkin
may be more effective than Excel or PowerPoint,
as it “can help us crystallize ideas, think outside
the box, and communicate in a way that other
people simply 'get'.” However, there are even
better applications allowing writing and sketch-
ing our visual notes, which are easily accessible
from any equipment due to the cloud computing
service environment (for example, iCloud (2012)
storage and cloud computing service, with over
100 million users).
When we think about the instruction in visu-
alization strategies, we may recall the 80-20 rule,
also called a Pareto principle, which states that 20%
of specific data may become a cause of the 80%
of effects. The 80-20 model may be examined in
relation to computer science, computer graphics,
and visualization. For example, about 20 percent
of software bugs caused about 80 percent of all
errors, so cleaning up 20% of errors helped Mi-
crosoft improve reliability of products (Rooney,
2002). For ray tracing - a computer graphics
