Visualization -- Definitions and Goals
"The purpose of computing is insight, not numbers", Richard Hamming (1962)

Relevant Dictionary Definitions of Visualization
* the formation of mental visual images
* the act or process of interpreting in visual terms or putting into visible form
* making visible to the mind or imagination

Paraphrases of Comments by Workers in the Field
The purpose of visualization is to render visible that which is not and thereby make it more understandable.

Visualization consists of the binding (or mapping) of data to representations that can be perceived. The types of bindings can be visual, auditory, tactile, or a combination

The goal is the systematic generation of visual representations, given a description of all the important data characteristics and the specification of the user's interpretation aims. The interpretation aims define what characteristics of the data, or relations between data variables, the user is interested in analyzing by means of visual representation.