Involve Me and I Will Understand!-Abstract Data Visualization in Immersive Environments

Literature concerning the visualization of abstract data in immersive environments is sparse. This publication is intended to (1) stimulate the application of abstract data visualization in such environments and to (2) introduce novel concepts involving the user as an active part of the interactive exploratory visualization process. To motivate discussion, requirements for the visualization of abstract data are reviewed and then related to the properties of immersive environments in order to show its potential for data visualization. This leads to the introduction of a novel concept for immersive visualization based on the involvement of the viewers into the data display. The usefulness of the concept is shown by two examples demonstrating that immersive environments are far more than tools to create visually appealing data representations.