Firework visualization: A model for local citation analysis

Abstract

Citation chasing, the pursuit of references from one publica- tion to another, is a popular technique among researchers for retrieving relevant and related literature. While a focused and precise method, citation chasing may be incomplete and unstable. Different choices of paths can lead to different sets of literature and generate inconsistent search results. Revealing the linkages among references would guide citation chasing as well as improve and stabilize the results since it enables researchers to develop search strategies. In this paper we use network analysis to examine the connections among papers cited as references, identifying and investigating papers with high authority and hub values. We construct local citation networks, introducing the firework visualization model to support citation chasing. We further introduce an interactive browser, designed to provide direct manipulation of references and aggregated summaries of retrieved results. The proposed firework model allows users to intuitively browse a local citation network and find relevant documents eficiently. Copyright © 2012 ACM.