Entry Name: NYU-Bowen-MC1

VAST Challenge 2015
Mini-Challenge 1

Team Members:

Bowen Yu, New York University, yubowenok@gmail.com PRIMARY

Bo Zhou, New York University, bz387@nyu.edu

Student Team:

Yes

Did you use data from both mini-challenges?

Yes

Analytic Tools Used:

Ad-hoc System (self-implemented for VAST challenge 2015)

Approximately how many hours were spent working on this submission in total?

233

May we post your submission in the Visual Analytics Benchmark Repository after VAST Challenge 2015 is complete?

Yes

Video Download

Video:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/bggts7ams5hcnbk/NYU-Bowen-MC1.wmv?dl=0

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Questions

NOTE:

- We have re-assigned IDs to the individuals based on their order of appearances throughout the weekend. The individuals are then grouped based on the similarity between their movement trajectories. Group IDs were assigned.

- Our system displays the newly assigned IDs. Therefore the snapshots all contain our custom group IDs.

- However, the person-ids listed in the answer use the IDs from the raw data.

MC1.1 – Characterize the attendance at DinoFun World on this weekend. Describe up to twelve different types of groups at the park on this weekend.

a. How big is this type of group?

b. Where does this type of group like to go in the park?

c. How common is this type of group?

d. What are your other observations about this type of group?

e. What can you infer about this type of group?

f. If you were to make one improvement to the park to better meet this group’s needs, what would it be?

Limit your response to no more than 12 images and 1000 words.

1) General visitors. This is the most common type of visitors. They usually consist 1 to 5 persons, an average is about 3. They would like to try everything and use all facilities in the park. The Thrill Rides and Shopping spots are their favorite. Since many of them are groups of two or more persons, and they visited the Kiddie Rides. We can infer they are mostly families with kids. They usually enjoyed everything and spend a whole day in the park. These groups are of around 50% of the total number of visitors. Typical person-ids: [1498108, 1502246, 1714217], [1961065, 196334].

Such groups are very likely to travel all around the park. They travel from one facility to the other, spending lots of time. The park could design the placement of the facilities more reasonable to avoid people wasting time on the way between facilities.

2) Vigorous adventurers. These visitors are usually small groups consist of 1 or 2 persons. They like to play the famous Thrill Rides. Looking at the ‘Facility Percentage’, they usually spend less time moving and more time playing. They move fast between facilities. They spend very little time shopping or drinking beer. There are around 15% of the total number of visitors are this type. Typical person-ids: 554218, 1212050, [2022204, 548151].

Unlike the others, some of such type of visitors didn’t spend the whole day in the park. They left early. Probably the Thrill Rides made them feel ill, so they didn’t enjoy the whole day. The park could offer facilities such as medical center to help them feel better.

3) Family shoppers. These visitors are usually groups of 2 to 5 people. They like shopping more than the others. They spend about half of their time shopping. They usually play some Kiddie Rides, very little Thrill Rides. They rarely drink beer. Thus we guess they are very likely families – parents with kids. These groups typically come to the park for only one day. There are about 10% to 15% of this type of groups. Typical person-ids: [1554434, 119370, 639730], [645418, 1865549, 590658].

Since the shoppers are very likely families with kids. Stuffed toys and superhero figures would fit their flavor.

4) Gourmet lovers. Around 5% to 8% of visitors really like the food offered in DinoFun World. The size of these groups are usually less than 10 people. They spend more than one third of their time enjoying the delicious food. Some groups came to the park late in the afternoon and just for the food. Typical person-ids: [122838, 1340222, 1473321, 1476464, 970913], [1427861, 187260].

The park could offer a variety of different kinds of delicious and healthy food.

5) Long-weekenders. There are some people who bought the three day tickets and spent the whole weekend visiting the park. There were about 1200 visitor stayed for three days. Many of them were individuals while some came in groups. They enjoyed everything in the park in the three days. They usually watched one of the shows of Scott at facility 63 -- the stage, but didn’t go to the other shows. Probably this is because the shows were the same. Typical person-ids: 1567378, 1388440, 664389, 968967.

The park already have lodging for this type of guest, which is nice. The park can also suggest detailed tour plans for them to fully utilize three days’ time.

6) Beer friends. This type of groups like to spend their time hanging out in the Beer Gardens, while playing a little bit of everything. They are sometimes group of 2 to 3 persons, or often just a single person. About 5% of total visitors are of this type. Typical person-ids: [1118800, 160792].

The park could put beer bar near food facilities.

7) Snooping stalkers. There are a bunch of weird visitors, 8 on Friday, 9 on Saturday and 12 on Sunday. Typical person-ids: 1725365, 921888.

They have some visiting patterns in common, which are highly suspicious.

· Everyone is by himself/herself.

· Each of them only shows up for a single day.

· They spend lots of time stay around several facilities of ‘Rides for Everyone’ or ‘Shows & Entertainment’. But they NEVER check-in.

· They don’t eat food, they don't EVEN go the restrooms. Even for the entire day staying at the park. The just roaming between some particular kinds of facilities.

· Some of them went to the facility 32 Pavilion more than once. It seems they are fans of Scott Jones. But they actually never watch Scott’s show on the stage.

The picture below shows these patterns. The red targets are this type of visitors on Saturday. The left top table is the Facility Percentage shows the percentage of time one spend in each type of facilities. The bottom chart is the facility sequences visited. The colors indicate the facility types. The darker colors tells if one has checked in at the facility. The visiting time for Pavilion (in purple) is about 10 to 20 minutes. It can be seen that the Snooping Stalker groups’ visit of the Pavilion took different amount of time, compared with the other people.

Below is another example. We select the regular visitors near facility 20. We can conclude from their check-in status, this rides ends every 20 minutes. However, the person that wanders around facility 20 didn’t check-in. And we guess he didn’t played on the ride since the time he left didn’t match the ending time.

The park should watch closely at these type of visitors. Because they are so suspicious.

8) Large hordes. There are people come in large groups – at least 10 members on each of the three days. They generally count about 10% of the total number of visitor every day. Each such groups only comes on one day. They like to play rides, especially the thrill ones. Besides the rides, some of such groups like shopping, others like the beer.

9) Staffs for Scott’s show. There were 8 people, including person-id: 1080969, etc. Their activities pattern was very unique. They came to the stage before every show of Scott; they left the park afterwards. They came twice a day. However, they didn’t come on Sunday afternoon, since the show was cancelled.

MC1.2 – Are there notable differences in the patterns of activity on in the park across the three days? Please describe the notable difference you see.

Limit your response to no more than 3 images and 300 words.

1) Every day 10am - 11am and 3pm - 4pm is the show time of Scott at facility 63 Grinosaurous Stage. But after the crime, the Sunday afternoon show was cancelled.

We observe from the heat map of number of people in the park throughout the day. There were large crowds of people who entered before the show, and left after the show. They need to check-in to join the event.

But on Sunday afternoon, there were crowds of people coming to the stage around the regular show time. Then they were somehow informed the show was cancelled, so they left without staying there. Nobody checked-in at this facility on Sunday afternoon.

2) The facility 32 is the Creighton Pavilion that exhibits Scott Jones’s items. Every day there are visitors check-in here, until around 12:30pm on Sunday. It has been closed due to the crime.

Visitors need to check-in at the Pavilion. Observing the heat map, we know there are visitors visiting during the day constantly, except for the show time. They are more likely to be attracted to watch the show on the stage 63. After the crime was discovered, the park operations close the scene and nobody can get in. The last one get out from the building was about 12:30pm.

MC1.3 – What anomalies or unusual patterns do you see? Describe no more than 10 anomalies, and prioritize those unusual patterns that you think are most likely to be relevant to the crime.

Limit your response to no more than 10 images and 500 words.

1) The type of “Snooping Stalker” visitors (described in answers to MC1.1 type (7)) are highly suspicious. Besides the 5 suspicious patterns mentioned in MC1.1. Some of them also frequently visited facility 32 the Pavilion where Scott’s items were exhibited, in the morning of Sunday.

Some of them left the park very soon after the vandalism was discovered.

Some of them even frequently visited and stayed near the scene in the afternoon, after the park operators closed it.

2) Very long stay at the Pavilion. The average visiting time of visitors at facility 32 the Pavilion is around 20 to 40 minutes. There were three groups of people stayed for over two hours, the Sunday morning. Since we know the vandalism happened there in the morning, at that time. They are probably closely related to the crime. In particular, one group which consist of 37 people, didn’t check in while their stays; and they didn’t left until near the closure of the facility. The group members’ person-ids include: 1038892, 1041478, etc.

3) Disappeared in the restroom. A group of 5 people disappeared in the restroom for about 6 hours on Sunday. Then re-appeared in one of the information center and left the park. It is possible their apps were broken. But they are still very suspicious. Why all the 5 of them encounters the same problem?

4)
Sudden movement. A group of people suddenly move from one side of the map to the entrance in 20 seconds. The person-ids are: 1421406, 1440397, 1484697, 212756, 237750 and 786972.

5)

Jumping coordinates. The positions of person-id 1983765 who visited on Saturday, seems very weird by jumping between two positions. It could be some bug in the Park App, which causes the system misrecognize some other person’s position and recorded under id 1983765.

6)

One person (id: 657863) didn't leave the park at Friday night, then he left at the beginning of Saturday morning. He didn’t come on Sunday, so he is probably innocent. We observe he was staying with some friends on late Friday night, after drinking beer. Maybe he was just drunk that night and woke up on the next morning.