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Virginia Tech

Interpreting Dimension Reductions through Gradient Visualization

Abstract

dc:description.abstract

Dimension reduction (DRs) are significant in data analysis to reduce the complexity of high dimensional data while preserving information to the greatest extent. However, the complex processes involved in DRs attribute to their inability to reason the relationship between the projection and the original data features (dimensions). "Why points are clustered?" and "What feature/s caused the points to scatter?" are some of the common questions. As a solution, we use gradients of the projection to generate visual explanations of the DRs. Utilizing these gradients, we show the point-wise sensitivities of the projection with respect to the original data features to explain the reasoning of DR. The combination of the gra- dients with various visualization techniques contribute to the exploration of the impact of dimensions on the projection. To overcome the curse of dimensionality, we propose inter- active techniques that facilitate the combination and comparison of features impact on the projection through gradients. Encapsulating the gradients and the visualization techniques, we present a web-based framework that facilitates an overview of impacts of all features and allows users to selectively explore notable features.

Degree

thesis:*
Name thesis:degree_name
Master of Science
Level thesis:degree_level
masters
Discipline thesis:degree_discipline
Computer Science and Applications
Department dc:contributor.department
Computer Science and Applications
Grantor dc:publisher
Virginia Tech
Year dc:date.issued
2023

Author and committee

dc:creator, dc:contributor.*
Author dc:creator
  • Hamal, Sahil
Chair dc:contributor.committeechair
  • North, Christopher L.
Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember
  • Yang, Yalong
  • Faust, Rebecca Jane

Subjects

dc:subject × 3

Rights

dc:rights
Statement dc:rights
  • In Copyright
Language dc:language.iso
en

Identifiers

dc:identifier.*
Dc Identifier Other
vt_gsexam:37331
OAI identifier oai:identifier
oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/115225

Chain of custody

source
Harvested from
Virginia Tech
Base URL
vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/oai/request
Last updated
2026-07-22
Source record
OAI-PMH GetRecord
citation

Hamal, Sahil. Interpreting Dimension Reductions through Gradient Visualization. masters thesis, Virginia Tech, 2023. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/115225