Predicting Human Response to Future Environments through Data Visualizations
Terry C. Daniel and Michael J. Meitner
Environmental Perception Laboratory
Department of Psychology
University of Arizona
Tucson, AZ 85721
sbelab@ccit.arizona.edu
Abstract
Data visualizations are increasingly used to communicate future environmental conditions in the context of environmental planning and public participation efforts. The characteristics of visualizations range from "wire-frame" computer displays to photo-realistic video images. An assumption behind all of these representations is that they will provide the viewer (e.g., the public) with a valid indication of the relevant characteristic of the targeted future environment. In this study the same set of forest landscape scenes was represented by visualizations representing three different levels of realism/abstraction, ranging from full color high resolution images, to more abstract reduced color images, to achromatic low resolution images. The different visualizations were shown to separate groups of observers who rated the perceived scenic beauty of the represented scenes. Ratings in each visualization condition showed substantial differences between the scenes, and there was high consistency among the raters within each group. In contrast, correlations between the ratings of the same scenes in the different visualization conditions were very low, indicating essentially no consistent relationships. These results have important implications for the selection of environmental visualization methods for public communication/involvement efforts, and for the validity of public preferences/values ascertained with visualizations of future environmental conditions.

Perceptions of Forest Landscapes
Abstract: 
Historically the study of forest aesthetics has been approached from a number of perspectives. This chapter provides a brief overview of research findings and issues arising from the perception-based approach to forest landscape aesthetics. These findings are placed in the larger context of aesthetics theory while drawing attention to issues of assessment, evaluation and experience. The interaction of environment and observer are discussed and applications to forest management are presented. 

Public perceptions and expert assessments: the effects of false-color in forest visualizations
Abstract: 
Experts’ assessments of forest conditions are often augmented by the use of "false-color" imagery, the use of infrared (or near infrared) images from aerial remote sensing sources being one of the more familiar instances. The effects of false coloration on public perceptions, however, have not been well studied. The experiment described below compared true and false colored versions of high resolution perspective representations of a single forest hazard- and insect impact-relevant conditions. Trained and experienced forest health experts provided estimates of spruce bark beetle hazard and mortality for the depicted conditions based on inspection of either the true or the false-color visualizations. Parallel to the expert assessments, representatives of untrained public observers provided perceived scenic beauty judgments for the same set of true or false colored images.

DATA VISUALIZATION FOR FOREST HEALTH MANAGEMENT DECISION SUPPORT.
Terry C. Daniel and Michael J. Meitner
Environmental Perception Laboratory
Department of Psychology
University of Arizona
and
Brian Orland
Imaging Systems Laboratory
Department of Landscape Architecture
University of Illinois

ABSTRACT
Forest health management decisions are often based on long range projections of future forest conditions, including the
effects of health affecting agents. These conditions and effects can be complex and difficult for those not trained or
experienced in forest health management to understand. Modern computer-based environmental data visualization
systems have been found to be of great assistance in this context. Forest health experts can use high-speed, analytic
visualizations to interactively explore the visual characteristics of forests and forest health changes at stand and
landscape scales. Interdisciplinary forest management teams can more effectively come to a mutual understanding of
expected changes in forest conditions, and of the effects of forest health agents on those conditions. Photographically
realistic visualizations can help concerned public audiences to better understand and appreciate the motivations and
intentions of proposed forest health management actions. These and other potential uses of computer data
visualizations in the context of forest health management are reviewed and evaluated using examples from recently
completed and ongoing projects.

Effects of Animation and Interactivity on Human Responses to a Visualized Forest Site 
by
Michael J. Meitner and Terry C. Daniel
Environmental Perception Laboratory 
Department of Psychology
University of Arizona Tucson, AZ 85721
sbelab@ccit.arizona.edu
Abstract
Cost effective computer visualization techniques have made itincreasingly feasible to visually represent environmental conditions that are otherwise only represented by abstract statistics. Currently at the University of Arizona'sEnvironmental Perception Laboratory we are investigating the effectiveness of various environmental visualization methods for determining public perception of the beauty of forested landscapes. In particular, we have investigated the effects of interactivity in which the observer is able to freely scan a 360 degree computer visualization of the environment. High resolution computer animated walk-throughs developed by Texas A&M University's Visualization Laboratory were also presented. Interactive and fixed modes of representation were compared for assessments of scenic beauty and of recreational quality (overnight camping) with parallel measures obtained from observers on-site. Interactivity was found to be more important for camping quality judgments than for scenic beauty judgments. Implications for future research and applications of environmental visualization technologies will be discussed.