Integrating Scientific Workflows and Large Tiled Display Walls: Bridging the Visualization Divide

Abstract

Modern in-silico science (or e-Science) is a complex process, often involving multiple steps conducted across different computing environments. Scientific workflow tools help scientists automate, manage and execute these steps, providing a robust and repeatable research environment. Increasingly workflows generate data sets that require scientific visualization, using a range of display devices such as local workstations, immersive 3D caves and large display walls. Traditionally, this display step handled outside the workflow, and output files are manually copied to a suitable visualization engine for display. This inhibits the scientific discovery process disconnecting the workflow that generated the data from the display and interpretation processes. In this paper we present a solution that links scientific workflows with a variety of display devises, including large tiled display walls. We demonstrate the feasibility of the system by a prototype implementation that leverages the Kepler workflow engine and the SAGE display software. We illustrate the use of the system with a case study in workflow driven microscopy.