Interactive scientific visualization: An assessment of a virtual reality system

A virtual reality system, consisting of a head-mounted stereoscopic display and a computer-interfaced glove, was assessed by examining interaction with a 3-D model of the human brain. Interactions were recorded on videotape. Non-trivial user interface issues were identified, ranging from constraints imposed by the nature of the wearable interface hardware, to the choice of gestures for controlling the interaction, to problems with a metaphor used in the interface. Some possible solutions are discussed. Effective solutions to these problems, coupled with increases in the computational power of the underlying hardware, are needed for virtual reality to realize its immense potential for scientific visualization.