SRD Seminar:

Time: 10:30 5/8/02

Auditorium

SNAP EDA Mapping Software

Chris North & Dave DesJardins

The purpose of this seminar is to announce the development of an exciting new software package – SNAP. SNAP gives our Bureau data analysts a quantum leap in our data analysis/editing capability by linking our point and click SAS/JMP EDA software package to ESRI’s mapping package. Essentially, this SNAP software will allow us to easily display on a map the results of our powerful graphical JMP EDA analysis techniques.

SEMINAR DETAILS:

First, we will demonstrate our software package that links the SAS JMP

statistical analysis software to ESRI's MapObjects GIS software. This link

between JMP and MapObjects is designed for internal Census use, providing

analysts with a markedly enhanced data analysis capability. It enables

analysts to explore and discover relationships between statistical and

geographic data, while taking advantage of the already existing/extensive functionality of each software package in which analysts have significant expertise. (The basics of the powerful, point-and-click, SAS JMP package can be mastered in only one day – and this, thus, eliminates the need to create new statistical data analysis software.)

Second, we will discuss recent progress on Snap2, the successor to previous

work on Snap-Together Visualization. Snap2 is a flexible approach to

constructing advanced user interfaces for exploring data without programming.

Major new advancements in Snap2 include a web-based architecture for global

accessibility, much improved user interface supporting a wide audience of

non-programmers and data novices, collaborative capabilities for publishing

and distribution of data and visualizations, and run-time extensibility

enabling programmers to submit new visualization components over the web for

others to use. Snap2 provides a foundation for a front-end to meta-data and

data repositories that can vastly improve census ability to quickly analyze,

share, and publish information.

Chris North is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer Science

at Virginia Tech, member of the Center for Human-Computer Interaction, and

head of the Lab for Information Visualization and Evaluation. Previously he

worked at the Census Bureau in the Statistical Research Division, Usability

Group, where he initiated the ongoing work on Dynamaps. He received his

Ph.D. from the University of Maryland, College Park, as member of the

Human-Computer Interaction Lab.

Introductory remarks will be given by Dave DesJardins. Dave has taught his EDA course for many years at the Bureau – and has recently retired from SRD after 40 + years with the government. This SNAP software link is his brainchild – and he considers its development to be the highlight of his career!

NOTE:

A follow-up “business” meeting will take place at 2:00 pm in room 3225-4. All individuals who are interested in the use (and the training program) of this package are invited to attend.