Elsevier and Kitware Bring 3D Visualization Tools and Techniques to ScienceDirect

AMSTERDAM, October 15, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --

ScienceDirect offers ability to view 3D datasets next to the published online articles  

Elsevier, a world-leading provider of scientific, technical and medical information products and services, and Kitware, a worldwide leader in developing advanced visualization technologies, today announced that Elsevier journals offer the opportunity to upload 3D datasets when submitting a paper for publication. This way, once published, readers can interactively explore 3D datasets next to the online article on ScienceDirect.

3D visualization is important for understanding complex structures, dynamic simulations, and discoveries in various scientific disciplines such as molecular biology, astrophysics, medical imaging and engineering. However, in the course of publishing research papers traditionally, 3D models and data have to be converted into static 2D images, significantly reducing the extent of the author's analysis and the level of interpretation of the research by readers. To address the growing demands for online 3D visualization across various scientific disciplines, Elsevier and Kitware now work in partnership to enable 3D visualization services for research articles available online on ScienceDirect.

To date 23 Elsevier journals within science disciplines molecular biology, archaeology, neuroscience and psychiatry offer 3D visualization services to authors and readers. The specific 3D viewers currently available are: 3D molecular viewer, 3D archaeological viewer and 3D neuroimaging viewer. Over the next three months the number of Elsevier journals offering the service is expected to grow significantly.

Dr. IJsbrand Jan Aalbersberg, SVP Journal and Data Solutions at Elsevier said, "The addition of advanced 3D interactivity to the online Elsevier article empowers our authors to optimally showcase their research and enables our ScienceDirect users to more deeply and efficiently understand the research presented. This latest achievement stemming from Elsevier's Article of the Future program, fully demonstrates what the program stands for: improving optimal communication between author and reader, benefiting both of them."

"Being a part of this project, which is set to providing Elsevier's authors, readers and other users with improved 3D visualization capabilities online on ScienceDirect has been an exceptional opportunity for us," added Julien Jomier, CEO of Kitware SAS in Lyon, France. "Our infrastructure provides the much-needed resources necessary for scientists to interact with publications and maximize their understanding of existing research."

Example articles featuring 3D viewers on ScienceDirect:

• J.H. Cole, C.P. Boyle, A. Simmons, S. Cohen-Woods, M. Rivera, P. McGuffin, P.M. Thompson, C.H.Y. Fu, Body mass index, but not FTO genotype or major depressive disorder, influences brain structure, Neuroscience, Volume 252, 12 November 2013, pp. 109-117, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306452213005903 (embedded 3D neuroimaging viewer)

• Gerhard W. Weber, Another link between archaeology and anthropology: Virtual anthropology, Digital Applications in Archaeology and Cultural Heritage, Available online 13 April 2013, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2212054813000027 (embedded 3D archaeology viewer)

• Stephen S. Chen, James R. Williamson, Characterization of the Ribosome Biogenesis Landscape in E. coli Using Quantitative Mass Spectrometry, Journal of Molecular Biology, Volume 425, Issue 4, 22 February 2013, pp. 767-779, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022283612009138 (embedded 3D molecular viewer)

Offering interactive visualization tools and techniques, allowing for better and more accurate interpretation and analysis of research data is one of the pillars of Article of the Future, Elsevier's on-going program to improve the format of the scientific article.

# # #

Elsevier journals currently offering 3D visualization services to their authors and readers

Journal of Molecular Biology, Structure, Food Structure, FEBS Letters, BBA Proteins and Proteomics, Journal of Molecular and Cellular Cardiology, Mutation Research Fundamental and Molecular Mechanisms of Mutagenesis, DNA Repair, Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Digital Applications in Archaeology and Cultural Heritage, Zoology, NeuroImage, NeuroImage: Clinical, Psychiatry Research Neuroimaging, Journal of Neuroscience Methods, Neuropsychologia, Brain Research, Neuroscience, Neuron, Current Biology, Journal of Neurolinguistics, Intelligence

About Kitware

Kitware is a leader in the creation and support of open-source software and state-of-the-art technology, and is one of the fastest growing software companies in the country. Kitware's mission is to develop and deliver cutting-edge software products and services utilizing advanced software quality methods and technologies. Since its founding in 1998, Kitware has combined an open-source business model with state-of-the-art software engineering and world-class imaging expertise to become the industry leader in open-source solutions for medical computing, scientific computing, computer vision, data management, and quality software process. The company's business model is anchored on improving open-source platforms unfettered by intellectual property restrictions, while generating profit by providing consulting services to a diverse set of scientific and engineering communities. This model has proven highly successful and resilient even in the face of the most recent global recession.

Kitware has built a strong reputation by partnering with government, academic, and commercial organizations to create and support large, collaborative, and open-source communities that use, improve, and nurture a common software platform. The company has maintained decade-long open-source collaborations with prestigious organizations such as Los Alamos National Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories, the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the National Library of Medicine (NLM). This has resulted in some of the largest and most successful open-source, community-driven software engineering projects, including the Visualization Toolkit (VTK), the Insight Segmentation and Registration Toolkit (ITK), ParaView, and the cross-platform build tool CMake. Kitware also provides a significant amount of software development services to large and small commercial customers interested in leveraging and engaging with open-source communities. This includes medical device manufacturers, pharmaceutical companies, and the oil and gas industry.

About ScienceDirect

ScienceDirect is home to almost one-quarter of the world's peer-reviewed full-text scientific, technical and medical content. Over 15 million researchers, health care professionals, teachers, students and information professionals around the globe rely on ScienceDirect as a trusted source of nearly 2,200 journals, almost 900 serials and close to 22,000 book titles. ScienceDirect supports research and education with interactive elements in articles such as audio, video, graphs, tables and images, and offers tools so users can easily set alerts. Content on ScienceDirect also features embedded links to external datasets, including earth and environmental science data from PANGAEA, abstract and indexing data from Scopus and chemical reactions data from Reaxys. With almost 12 million content pieces available-including pre-publication release of articles and open access content from Elsevier journals-ScienceDirect is a premier platform for discovering the world of research.

About Elsevier

Elsevier is a world-leading provider of scientific, technical and medical information products and services. The company works in partnership with the global science and health communities to publish more than 2,000 journals, including The Lancet and Cell, and close to 20,000 book titles, including major reference works from Mosby and Saunders. Elsevier's online solutions include ScienceDirect, Scopus, SciVal, Reaxys, ClinicalKey and Mosby's Suite, which enhance the productivity of science and health professionals, helping research and health care institutions deliver better outcomes more cost-effectively.

A global business headquartered in Amsterdam, Elsevier employs 7,000 people worldwide. The company is part of Reed Elsevier Group PLC, a world leading provider of professional information solutions. The group employs more than 30,000 people, including more than 15,000 in North America. Reed Elsevier Group PLC is owned equally by two parent companies, Reed Elsevier PLC and Reed Elsevier NV. Their shares are traded on the London, Amsterdam and New York Stock Exchanges using the following ticker symbols: London: REL; Amsterdam: REN; New York: RUK and ENL.

Media contact
Elena Zudilova-Seinstra, PhD
Elsevier
+31-20-485-3197
e.zudilova-seinstra@elsevier.com