ABSTRACT
Multidimensional scaling (MDS) rests on the premise that a picture is worth a thousand numbers. The tenn multidimensional scaling refers to a family of data analysis methods, all of which portray the data's structure in a spatial fashion easily assimilated by the relatively untrained human eye. That is, they construct a geometric representation of the data, usually in a Euclidean space of fairly low dimensionality. Some multidimensional scaling methods display the data structure in non-Euclidean spaces, and some methods provide additional information about how the structure varies over time, individuals, or experimental conditions. The essential ingredient defining all multidimensional scaling methods is the spatial representation of data structure.
