Data Visualization in Physics II: VRML and Java for three-dimensional imaging and fully three-dimensional movies

Presentation and analysis of large three-dimensional data sets is in general hard to do using only two-dimensional figures and plots. In this talk, we will demonstrate techniques for illustrating static and dynamic three-dimensional objects and data using Virtual Reality Modeling Language (VRML) as well as Java. The advantage of these two languages is that they are platform-independent, which allows for easy sharing of data and visualizations. In addition, manipulation of data is relatively easy as rotation, translation and zooming can be done in real- time for static objects as well as for data and objects that vary and deform in time. Examples of fully three-dimensional movies will be shown, including dendritic growth and propagation of electrical waves in cardiac tissue. In addition, we will show how to include VRML and Java viewers in PowerPoint for easy presentation of results in classes and seminars.