Gregory M. Nielson, Kwan-Liu Ma Recognized for Achievements at IEEE Visualization 2013

Gregory M. Nielson, Kwan-Liu Ma Recognized for Achievements at IEEE Visualization 2013 LOS ALAMITOS, Calif., 8 November 2013 – The IEEE Computer Society Technical Committee on Visualization and Graphics (IEEE VGTC) has recognized Gregory M. Nielson of the University of Arizona and Kwan-Liu Ma of the University of California at Davis for their achievements in visualization.

Nielson received the 2013 Visualization Career Award at IEEE Visualization 2013 for his lifetime contributions to visualization.

This includes his seminal research in geometry/topology-based modeling algorithms for visualization and for cofounding the Visualization Conference and IEEE Computer Society's IEEE Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics (TVCG) journal.

Ma received the 2013 Visualization Technical Achievement Award at IEEE Visualization 2013 in recognition of his seminal work in large-scale data visualization and new visualization techniques. His work has stimulated research in new fields of visualization.

Nielson, a professor emeritus at Arizona State University, has conducted research in numerical analysis, computer-aided geometric design, and approximation theory. His paper on Nu-Splines introduced the concept of geometric continuity and tension parameters in conjunction with spline functions and interactive design. Later, Nielson introduced one of the very first methods for interpolating scattered multivariate data with his so-called "Minimum Norm Network" method.

Nielson conceived and initiated the IEEE Visualization Conference series in 1990, where he has served on the Steering Committee and various other committees throughout the years. He was a cofounder and associate editor of TVCG. Nielson is the recipient of the John Gregory Memorial Award in Geometric Modeling, the IEEE Outstanding Contribution Award and the IEEE Computer Society's Meritorious Service Award. He has been an IEEE Golden Core Charter Member since 1996.

Ma is a professor of computer science at UC Davis, where he leads the Visualization and Interface Design Innovation (VIDI) research group, and directs the UC Davis Center for Visualization. Before joining UC Davis in 1999, he was a staff scientist with the Institute for Computer Applications in Science and Engineering (ICASE) at the NASA Langley Research Center.

Ma is one of the few making important contributions to all three major areas of visualization—scientific visualization, information visualization, and visual analytics—and his work has often led to new research avenues. He was a guest editor of both the 2001 and 2013 large-scale data visualization issues of IEEE Computer Graphics & Applications (CG&A) and has co-authored over 250 scientific publications. He is the recipient of a Presidential Early Career Award in Science and Engineering (PECASE) and an IEEE Fellow. Ma has served as an associate editor of TVCG andCG&A, the Journal of Computational Science and Discovery, and Journal of Visualization.

The IEEE VGTC Visualization Career Award was established in 2004. It is given every year to an individual to honor that person's lifetime contributions to visualization. The IEEE VGTC Visualization Technical Achievement Award was established in 2004. It is given every year to recognize an individual for a seminal technical achievement in visualization.

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