Interactive stereoscopic computer displays for biomedical research

The main applications of digital computers in biomedical research have so far been in the processing and analysis of data, but they also have a role in the assessment of ideas which can in turn give guidance to certain experimental procedures. Before computers can be used at this intuitive level, the man-machine communication needs to be improved and methods for achieving this are described, using visual displays and manual facilities for the research worker to interact with the computation. Techniques for achieving such interaction on a small computer, with a conventional cathode ray tube and potentiometer controls, are explained, and operation of the system is illustrated with respect to the orientation of stereoscopic images representing molecular structures.