The International Science & Engineering Visualization Challenge 2010

February 19, 2011 6:26 AM

The International Science & Engineering Visualization Challenge 2010 - "Researchers are generating mind-boggling volumes of data at exponentially increasing rates. The ability to process that information and display it in ways that enhance understanding is an increasingly important aspect of the way scientists communicate with each other and—especially—with students and the general public. That's why, for the past 8 years, Science and the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) have co-sponsored annual challenges to promote cutting-edge efforts to visualize scientific data, principles, and ideas. This year's awardees span scales from nanoparticles to colliding galaxies, and from microseconds to millennia."
posted by Blazecock Pileon (9 comments total)

So Republicans are going to cut funding for this, because clearly the private sector could do it better?
posted by orthogonality at 6:59 AM on February 19, 2011

Are any of these interactive?
posted by demiurge at 7:38 AM on February 19, 2011

Previously: 2008, 2006, 2004
posted by euphorb at 9:57 AM on February 19, 2011

Great post. This bit caught me by surprise:

GPS satellites orbit at an altitude of 20,000 kilometers. The problem: Time moves 38 microseconds a day faster at that altitude than on Earth's surface. That may not seem like much, but after a month, it could throw the GPS system off by more than 300 kilometers.

Time moves at different speeds at higher altitudes? WTF?
posted by joedan at 11:02 AM on February 19, 2011

Yup.
posted by lumensimus at 11:45 AM on February 19, 2011

The picture of the virus attacking the bacteria was pretty cool.
posted by jamesww at 1:34 PM on February 19, 2011

Isn't that also caused by greater velocity due to it being in orbit or is it only because of the gravitation dilation?
posted by hellslinger at 3:27 PM on February 19, 2011

hellslinger: Both of those effects need to be accounted for for GPS to work. There's also a frame-dragging effect that's caused by Earth's rotation, but it's too small to be important for GPS.
posted by hattifattener at 4:16 PM on February 19, 2011 [1 favorite]

There's probably got a device in your pocket that's programmed to compensate for general relativity. Too cool.

Also this Flash slideshow is too small for my Packard Bell EGA 640 x 480 monitor, is there a way to get full images?
posted by RobotVoodooPower at 5:05 PM on February 19, 2011 [1 favorite]