Multi-faceted insight through interoperable visual information analysis paradigms

To gain insight and understanding of complex information collections, users must be able to visualize and explore many facets of the information. This paper presents several novel visual methods from an information analyst's perspective. We present a sample scenario, using the various methods to gain a variety of insights from a large information collection. We conclude that no single paradigm or visual method is sufficient for many analytical tasks. Often a suite of integrated methods offers a better analytic environment in today's emerging culture of information overload and rapidly changing issues. We also conclude that the interactions among these visual paradigms are equally as important as, if not more important than, the paradigms themselves.