Distorted visualization methods for convergent assembly

To get a complete picture of all the convergent assembly levels of a nanofactory all in one image one needs to project space.
Normal perspective (a linear projection) is unsuitable since it compresses most details towards the horizon. Instead a nonlinear polar logarithmic mapping is the best fit.

An additional difficulty is that a nanofactory as opposed to a map is inherently three dimensional so some cross cut has to be choosen. It depends on the nanofactories design whether that cross cut can be simply planar or not.

(TODO: add image [1] -- license?)

Related

• This visualisation method may also be useful to keep oriented in spaces other than physical space like very lare software systems.
• The software interface principle of progressive disclosure
• general software issues

External Links

• python scripts to generate log-polar maps from pixelgraphics [2]
• "Detail-In-Context Visualization for Satellite Imagery" [3]
  "Complex Logarithmic Views for Small Details in Large Contexts" [4]
  by Joachim Boettinger et. al.
  Department of Computer and Information Science, University of Konstanz, Germany
• Video showing a manual multi-scale zoom device [5] the "zoom-scope"
• square grid mapped to show details on all scales equally [6]
• More large scale map examples [7]

Keywords

distortion lens view; log-polar map; complex logarithmic map, complex logarithmic view, anamorphic mirror, anamorphosis