49 research outputs found

    Graph analysis combining numerical, statistical, and streaming techniques

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    Graph analysis uses graph data collected on a physical, biological, or social phenomena to shed light on the underlying dynamics and behavior of the agents in that system. Many fields contribute to this topic including graph theory, algorithms, statistics, machine learning, and linear algebra. This dissertation advances a novel framework for dynamic graph analysis that combines numerical, statistical, and streaming algorithms to provide deep understanding into evolving networks. For example, one can be interested in the changing influence structure over time. These disparate techniques each contribute a fragment to understanding the graph; however, their combination allows us to understand dynamic behavior and graph structure. Spectral partitioning methods rely on eigenvectors for solving data analysis problems such as clustering. Eigenvectors of large sparse systems must be approximated with iterative methods. This dissertation analyzes how data analysis accuracy depends on the numerical accuracy of the eigensolver. This leads to new bounds on the residual tolerance necessary to guarantee correct partitioning. We present a novel stopping criterion for spectral partitioning guaranteed to satisfy the Cheeger inequality along with an empirical study of the performance on real world networks such as web, social, and e-commerce networks. This work bridges the gap between numerical analysis and computational data analysis.Ph.D

    WATCHING PEOPLE: ALGORITHMS TO STUDY HUMAN MOTION AND ACTIVITIES

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    Nowadays human motion analysis is one of the most active research topics in Computer Vision and it is receiving an increasing attention from both the industrial and scientific communities. The growing interest in human motion analysis is motivated by the increasing number of promising applications, ranging from surveillance, human–computer interaction, virtual reality to healthcare, sports, computer games and video conferencing, just to name a few. The aim of this thesis is to give an overview of the various tasks involved in visual motion analysis of the human body and to present the issues and possible solutions related to it. In this thesis, visual motion analysis is categorized into three major areas related to the interpretation of human motion: tracking of human motion using virtual pan-tilt-zoom (vPTZ) camera, recognition of human motions and human behaviors segmentation. In the field of human motion tracking, a virtual environment for PTZ cameras (vPTZ) is presented to overcame the mechanical limitations of PTZ cameras. The vPTZ is built on equirectangular images acquired by 360° cameras and it allows not only the development of pedestrian tracking algorithms but also the comparison of their performances. On the basis of this virtual environment, three novel pedestrian tracking algorithms for 360° cameras were developed, two of which adopt a tracking-by-detection approach while the last adopts a Bayesian approach. The action recognition problem is addressed by an algorithm that represents actions in terms of multinomial distributions of frequent sequential patterns of different length. Frequent sequential patterns are series of data descriptors that occur many times in the data. The proposed method learns a codebook of frequent sequential patterns by means of an apriori-like algorithm. An action is then represented with a Bag-of-Frequent-Sequential-Patterns approach. In the last part of this thesis a methodology to semi-automatically annotate behavioral data given a small set of manually annotated data is presented. The resulting methodology is not only effective in the semi-automated annotation task but can also be used in presence of abnormal behaviors, as demonstrated empirically by testing the system on data collected from children affected by neuro-developmental disorders

    Computational imaging and automated identification for aqueous environments

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    Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution June 2011Sampling the vast volumes of the ocean requires tools capable of observing from a distance while retaining detail necessary for biology and ecology, ideal for optical methods. Algorithms that work with existing SeaBED AUV imagery are developed, including habitat classi fication with bag-of-words models and multi-stage boosting for rock sh detection. Methods for extracting images of sh from videos of longline operations are demonstrated. A prototype digital holographic imaging device is designed and tested for quantitative in situ microscale imaging. Theory to support the device is developed, including particle noise and the effects of motion. A Wigner-domain model provides optimal settings and optical limits for spherical and planar holographic references. Algorithms to extract the information from real-world digital holograms are created. Focus metrics are discussed, including a novel focus detector using local Zernike moments. Two methods for estimating lateral positions of objects in holograms without reconstruction are presented by extending a summation kernel to spherical references and using a local frequency signature from a Riesz transform. A new metric for quickly estimating object depths without reconstruction is proposed and tested. An example application, quantifying oil droplet size distributions in an underwater plume, demonstrates the efficacy of the prototype and algorithms.Funding was provided by NOAA Grant #5710002014, NOAA NMFS Grant #NA17RJ1223, NSF Grant #OCE-0925284, and NOAA Grant #NA10OAR417008

    Interactions of fluorophores with complex surfaces and spectroscopic examinations of ancient manuscripts

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    In the first part of this thesis, it was found by fibre-optic fluorescence spectroscopy, that the greening of fabrics washed in optical brighteners is due to a reabsorption effect. The quantum yield of fluorescence of the optical brighteners OB15, OB36 and OB49 in water are 0.11 0.11 , 0.08 0.08 and 0.71 0.71 respectively. Their respective fluorescence natural lifetimes are 6700±109 6700\pm109 , 5971±712 5971\pm712 and 1685±22 1685\pm22 ps. In solution, the excited state of OB15 experiences more competing relaxation processes as the solvatochromic shift increases. OB49 displays the opposite trend. A literature cellulose model surface is employed as a cotton mimic for evanescent wave fluorescence studies. Two model greases are similarly developed and used, and a third is presented for future work. These are based on surface-specific reactions with glass substrates, and the doping of a regenerated cellulose film with long chain alcohols. On doped cellulose surfaces, some low quantum yields occur compared to clean cellulose and bulk solution. Photobleaching behaviours are also observed. Both dyes physisorb rigidly to cellulose and grease models. The second part of this thesis identifies the pigment palette of the earliest Northumbrian manuscripts pre- and post-1066, by Raman and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. It develops a suite of multispectral imaging programs in MATLAB for facile classification of pigments across a page ab initio, using data reduction and colour spaces. Raman and reflectance data are meta-analysed using symmetric permutation to split manuscripts and pigments into groups ab initio. It was also generalised, that the palette of the pre-Hastings selected manuscripts contained vergaut, indigo, orpiment, impure red lead, and copper green pigments, as well as orcein purples. Immediately post-1066 white lead, red ochre, vermilion and lapis lazuli appear in the palette in England, though vergaut and indigo disappear and the red lead used is essentially pure

    Applied Mathematics and Computational Physics

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    As faster and more efficient numerical algorithms become available, the understanding of the physics and the mathematical foundation behind these new methods will play an increasingly important role. This Special Issue provides a platform for researchers from both academia and industry to present their novel computational methods that have engineering and physics applications

    Articulated human tracking and behavioural analysis in video sequences

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    Recently, there has been a dramatic growth of interest in the observation and tracking of human subjects through video sequences. Arguably, the principal impetus has come from the perceived demand for technological surveillance, however applications in entertainment, intelligent domiciles and medicine are also increasing. This thesis examines human articulated tracking and the classi cation of human movement, rst separately and then as a sequential process. First, this thesis considers the development and training of a 3D model of human body structure and dynamics. To process video sequences, an observation model is also designed with a multi-component likelihood based on edge, silhouette and colour. This is de ned on the articulated limbs, and visible from a single or multiple cameras, each of which may be calibrated from that sequence. Second, for behavioural analysis, we develop a methodology in which actions and activities are described by semantic labels generated from a Movement Cluster Model (MCM). Third, a Hierarchical Partitioned Particle Filter (HPPF) was developed for human tracking that allows multi-level parameter search consistent with the body structure. This tracker relies on the articulated motion prediction provided by the MCM at pose or limb level. Fourth, tracking and movement analysis are integrated to generate a probabilistic activity description with action labels. The implemented algorithms for tracking and behavioural analysis are tested extensively and independently against ground truth on human tracking and surveillance datasets. Dynamic models are shown to predict and generate synthetic motion, while MCM recovers both periodic and non-periodic activities, de ned either on the whole body or at the limb level. Tracking results are comparable with the state of the art, however the integrated behaviour analysis adds to the value of the approach.Overseas Research Students Awards Scheme (ORSAS

    Aeronautical engineering: A continuing bibliography with indexes (supplement 275)

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    This bibliography lists 379 reports, articles, and other documents introduced into the NASA scientific and technical information system in Jan. 1991

    Computational imaging and automated identification for aqueous environments

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    Thesis (Ph. D.)--Joint Program in Oceanography/Applied Ocean Science and Engineering (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering; and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution), 2011."June 2011." Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references (p. 253-293).Sampling the vast volumes of the ocean requires tools capable of observing from a distance while retaining detail necessary for biology and ecology, ideal for optical methods. Algorithms that work with existing SeaBED AUV imagery are developed, including habitat classification with bag-of-words models and multi-stage boosting for rock sh detection. Methods for extracting images of sh from videos of long-line operations are demonstrated. A prototype digital holographic imaging device is designed and tested for quantitative in situ microscale imaging. Theory to support the device is developed, including particle noise and the effects of motion. A Wigner-domain model provides optimal settings and optical limits for spherical and planar holographic references. Algorithms to extract the information from real-world digital holograms are created. Focus metrics are discussed, including a novel focus detector using local Zernike moments. Two methods for estimating lateral positions of objects in holograms without reconstruction are presented by extending a summation kernel to spherical references and using a local frequency signature from a Riesz transform. A new metric for quickly estimating object depths without reconstruction is proposed and tested. An example application, quantifying oil droplet size distributions in an underwater plume, demonstrates the efficacy of the prototype and algorithms.by Nicholas C. Loomis.Ph.D
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