Distributed computing: new power for scientific visualization

Distributed computing provides unique benefits for scientific visualization in this system (Discover) that supports interactive visualization and cooperative work for nonprogrammers. Discover (Distributed Interactive Scientific Computing and Visualization Environment), is suitable for many areas, but we have concentrated on medical image analysis and generation-one of the the most rapidly growing applications for scientific visualization. In its present form, Discover acts as a framework for clinical applications. True to its name, it allows a variety of users to discover the relevant information in a vast body of scientific data. Nonprogrammers, such as physicians and radiologists, interactively display and manipulate the two and three dimensional medical objects, visualize the results, control system computation, and generally drive the image analysis process. The emphasis is on the distributed nature of the software architecture and its functions. We also describe a unique load balancing algorithm designed to maximize workstation performance.