Overview
This course introduces the principles and practice of visualizing data for exploration, analysis, and sensemaking. Students will learn how human perception and cognition shape visual analysis and design, and how to choose appropriate visual encodings for different data types. Topics include visualization of tabular, network, temporal, and spatial data; interaction techniques; dashboard design; and evaluation. Emphasis is placed on using visualization to build intuition about data and models to reveal patterns, surface anomalies, and making model behaviour interpretable.
Schedule
| Week | Topic | Lecture | Tutorial | Deliverable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Visualization Fundamentals | Introduction Marks and Channels Visual Encoding | No tutorial this week | |
| 2 | Introduction to Data-Driven Programming | D3 Selections Data Joins Gestalt Principles | Tutorial 0 | A1 released |
| 3 | Data & Task Abstraction | Scales My First Chart Pre-Attentitve Attributes | Tutorial 1 | A1 due, A2 released |
| 4 | Memory, Attention & List Alignment | Colorscales No Class (National Holiday) Colormaps and Filters | Tutorial 2 | A2 due, A3 released |
| 5 | Interactivity 101 | Interaction 101 Transitions Midterm Exam | No tutorial (Preparation for Midterm) | A3 due |
| Reading Week | ||||
| 6 | Matrix Alignment | A4 released | ||
| 7 | Scalar and Vector Fields | |||
| 8 | Networks and Trees | A4 due, A5 released | ||
| 9 | Parallel & Spatial Layouts | |||
| 10 | Re-Thinking 3-D | A5 due, A6 released | ||
| 11 | Aggregation & Clustering | |||
| 12 | Advanced Topics I | A6 due | ||
| 13 | Advanced Topics II | |||
| Final Exam | ||||
Note: This schedule is tentative and subject to change. Last updated: 2026-09-11.
Tutorials
Weekly tutorial will be posted on the courses GitHub page. Please reach out to the Teaching Staff with your email id to get added to the repository.
Assessments
Assignments 1-2 are individual. Assignments 4-6 are group-based.
Teaching Assistants
Nivetha Raj Pappuraj, Sridhar Karra, Miss Sharon Elizabeth Alex