A virtual environment for multimedia intelligence data analysis

The article describes an experimental, exploratory information visualization system under development at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. The system aims to integrate multimedia data and help users visualize the contents of multimedia databases. The prototype, named Starlight, interactively generates information-dense 3D graphical representations of multimedia data interrelationships. Despite the richness and complexity of the information displays, they remain easy to understand. The prototype incorporates an experimental immersive interface intended to foster improved understanding of, and interactions with, 3D information visualizations. The interface is intended to be of practical use in a production-oriented information analysis environment. Although the existing prototype intentionally addresses a specific class of problems faced by intelligence analysts, the authors feel the general approach has broad applicability outside the intelligence community.