Biometrics

Biometrics uses methods for unique recognition of humans based upon one or more intrinsic physical or behavioral traits. In computer science, particularly, biometrics is used as a form of identity access management and access control. It is also used to identify individuals in groups that are under surveillance. The book consists of 13 chapters, each focusing on a certain aspect of the problem. The book chapters are divided into three sections: physical biometrics, behavioral biometrics and medical biometrics. The key objective of the book is to provide comprehensive reference and text on human authentication and people identity verification from both physiological, behavioural and other points of view. It aims to publish new insights into current innovations in computer systems and technology for biometrics development and its applications. The book was reviewed by the editor Dr. Jucheng Yang, and many of the guest editors, such as Dr. Girija Chetty, Dr. Norman Poh, Dr. Loris Nanni, Dr. Jianjiang Feng, Dr. Dongsun Park, Dr. Sook Yoon and so on, who also made a significant contribution to the book

Discriminative preprocessing of speech : towards improving biometric authentication

Im Rahmen des "SecurePhone-Projektes" wurde ein multimodales System zur Benutzerauthentifizierung entwickelt, das auf ein PDA implementiert wurde. Bei der vollzogenen Erweiterung dieses Systems wurde der Möglichkeit nachgegangen, die Benutzerauthentifizierung durch eine auf biometrischen Parametern (E.: "feature enhancement") basierende Unterscheidung zwischen Sprechern sowie durch eine Kombination mehrerer Parameter zu verbessern. In der vorliegenden Dissertation wird ein allgemeines Bezugssystem zur Verbesserung der Parameter präsentiert, das ein mehrschichtiges neuronales Netz (E.: "MLP: multilayer perceptron") benutzt, um zu einer optimalen Sprecherdiskrimination zu gelangen. In einem ersten Schritt wird beim Trainieren des MLPs eine Teilmenge der Sprecher (Sprecherbasis) berücksichtigt, um die zugrundeliegenden Charakteristika des vorhandenen akustischen Parameterraums darzustellen. Am Ende eines zweiten Schrittes steht die Erkenntnis, dass die Größe der verwendeten Sprecherbasis die Leistungsfähigkeit eines Sprechererkennungssystems entscheidend beeinflussen kann. Ein dritter Schritt führt zur Feststellung, dass sich die Selektion der Sprecherbasis ebenfalls auf die Leistungsfähigkeit des Systems auswirken kann. Aufgrund dieser Beobachtung wird eine automatische Selektionsmethode für die Sprecher auf der Basis des maximalen Durchschnittswertes der Zwischenklassenvariation (between-class variance) vorgeschlagen. Unter Rückgriff auf verschiedene sprachliche Produktionssituationen (Sprachproduktion mit und ohne Hintergrundgeräusche; Sprachproduktion beim Telefonieren) wird gezeigt, dass diese Methode die Leistungsfähigkeit des Erkennungssystems verbessern kann. Auf der Grundlage dieser Ergebnisse wird erwartet, dass sich die hier für die Sprechererkennung verwendete Methode auch für andere biometrische Modalitäten als sinnvoll erweist. Zusätzlich wird in der vorliegenden Dissertation eine alternative Parameterrepräsentation vorgeschlagen, die aus der sog. "Sprecher-Stimme-Signatur" (E.: "SVS: speaker voice signature") abgeleitet wird. Die SVS besteht aus Trajektorien in einem Kohonennetz (E.: "SOM: self-organising map"), das den akustischen Raum repräsentiert. Als weiteres Ergebnis der Arbeit erweist sich diese Parameterrepräsentation als Ergänzung zu dem zugrundeliegenden Parameterset. Deshalb liegt eine Kombination beider Parametersets im Sinne einer Verbesserung der Leistungsfähigkeit des Erkennungssystems nahe. Am Ende der Arbeit sind schließlich einige potentielle Erweiterungsmöglichkeiten zu den vorgestellten Methoden zu finden. Schlüsselwörter: Feature Enhancement, MLP, SOM, Sprecher-Basis-Selektion, SprechererkennungIn the context of the SecurePhone project, a multimodal user authentication system was developed for implementation on a PDA. Extending this system, we investigate biometric feature enhancement and multi-feature fusion with the aim of improving user authentication accuracy. In this dissertation, a general framework for feature enhancement is proposed which uses a multilayer perceptron (MLP) to achieve optimal speaker discrimination. First, to train this MLP a subset of speakers (speaker basis) is used to represent the underlying characteristics of the given acoustic feature space. Second, the size of the speaker basis is found to be among the crucial factors affecting the performance of a speaker recognition system. Third, it is found that the selection of the speaker basis can also influence system performance. Based on this observation, an automatic speaker selection approach is proposed on the basis of the maximal average between-class variance. Tests in a variety of conditions, including clean and noisy as well as telephone speech, show that this approach can improve the performance of speaker recognition systems. This approach, which is applied here to feature enhancement for speaker recognition, can be expected to also be effective with other biometric modalities besides speech. Further, an alternative feature representation is proposed in this dissertation, which is derived from what we call speaker voice signatures (SVS). These are trajectories in a Kohonen self organising map (SOM) which has been trained to represent the acoustic space. This feature representation is found to be somewhat complementary to the baseline feature set, suggesting that they can be fused to achieve improved performance in speaker recognition. Finally, this dissertation finishes with a number of potential extensions of the proposed approaches. Keywords: feature enhancement, MLP, SOM, speaker basis selection, speaker recognition, biometric, authentication, verificatio

Computational micromodel for epigenetic mechanisms

Definition and characterization of the role of Epigenetic mechanisms have gained immense momentum since the completion of the Human Genome Project. The human epigenetic layer, made up of DNA methylation and multiple histone protein modifications, (the key elements of epigenetic mechanisms), is known to act as a switchboard that regulates the occurrence of most cellular events. In multicellular organisms such as humans, all cells have identical genomic contents but vary in DNA Methylation (DM) profile with the result that different types of cells perform a spectrum of functions. DM within the genome is associated with tight control of gene expression, parental imprinting, X-chromosome inactivation, long-term silencing of repetitive elements and chromatin condensation. Recently, considerable evidence has been put forward to demonstrate that environmental stress implicitly alters normal interactions among key epigenetic elements inside the genome. Aberrations in the spread of DM especially hypo/hyper methylation supported by an abnormal landscape of histone modifications have been strongly associated with Cancer initiation and development. While new findings on the impact of these key elements are reported regularly, precise information on how DM is controlled and its relation to networks of histone modifications is lacking. This has motivated modelling of DNA methylation and histone modifications and their interdependence. We describe initial computational methods used to investigate these key elements of epigenetic change, and to assess related information contained in DNA sequence patterns. We then describe attempts to develop a phenomenological epigenetic "micromodel", based on Markov-Chain Monte Carlo principles. This theoretical micromodel ("EpiGMP") aims to explore the effect of histome modifications and gene expression for defined levels of DNA methylation. We apply this micromodel to (i) test networks of genes in colon cancer (extracted from an in-house database, StatEpigen), and (ii) to help define an agent-based modelling framework to explore chromatin remodelling (or the dynamics of physical rearrangements), inside the human genome. Parallelization techniques to address issues of scale during the application of this micromodel have been adopted as well. A generic tool of this kind can potentially be applied to predict molecular events that affect the state of expression of any gene during the onset or progress of cancer. Ultimately, the goal is to provide additional information on ways in which these low level molecular changes determine physical traits for mormal and disease conditions in an organism

Reconstructing Social Prehistory from Genomic Data in the Indo-Pacific Region

Reconstructing the evolutionary history of our species has traditionally been the purview of archeology and linguistics, but is now increasingly influenced by genetics. However, the information held in our DNA cannot be read like a book, but must instead be extracted using population genetic theory, advanced statistical methods and computational tools that can handle large genome-scale datasets. In this series of published studies, these approaches have been applied to reconstruct human prehistory, with a special focus on the social features of past communities in the Indo-Pacific region. They reveal that marriage between Asian women and Melanesian men was favored during the spread of farming populations in the Neolithic period, that Madagascar was settled by a small number of Indonesian families with close female relatives, and that extremely complex marriage rules continue to define and structure small traditional communities in the Indo-Pacific region even today. These studies are largely unique in moving beyond a traditional emphasis in molecular anthropology of identifying and dating human migrations to instead reveal key aspects of the social rules by which those communities lived

Program and Proceedings: The Nebraska Academy of Sciences 1880-2010

PROGRAM FRIDAY, APRIL 23, 2010 REGISTRATION FOR ACADEMY, Lobby of Lecture wing, Olin Hall Aeronautics and Space Science, Session A, Olin 249 Aeronautics and Space Science, Session B, Olin 224 Chemistry and Physics, Section A, Chemistry, Olin A Collegiate Academy, Biology Session A, Olin B Collegiate Academy, Chemistry and Physics, Session A, Olin 324 Biological and Medical Sciences, Session A, Olin 112 Biological and Medical Sciences, Session B, Smith Callen Conference Center Chemistry and Physics, Section B, Physics, Planetarium History and Philosophy of Science, Olin 325 Junior Academy, Judges Check-In, Olin 219 Junior Academy, Senior High REGISTRATION, Olin Hall Lobby NWU Health and Sciences Graduate School Fair, Olin and Smith Curtiss Halls Junior Academy, Senior High Competition, Olin 124, Olin 131 Aeronautics and Space Science, Poster Session, Olin 249 Teaching of Science and Math, Olin 325 MAIBEN MEMORIAL LECTURE, OLIN B Dr. Mark Greip, Vice-Chair, Department of Chemistry, University of Nebraska-Lincoln LUNCH, PATIO ROOM, STORY STUDENT CENTER (pay and carry tray through cafeteria line, or pay at NAS registration desk) Aeronautics Group, Conestoga Room Anthropology, Olin 111 Biological and Medical Sciences, Session C, Olin 112 Biological and Medical Sciences, Session D, Smith Callen Conference Center Chemistry and Physics, Section A, Chemistry, Olin A Chemistry and Physics, Section B, Physics, Planetarium Collegiate Academy, Biology Session A, Olin B Collegiate Academy, Biology Session B, Olin 249 Collegiate Academy, Chemistry and Physics, Session A, Olin 324 Junior Academy, Judges Check-In, Olin 219 Junior Academy, Junior High REGISTRATION, Olin Hall Lobby Junior Academy, Senior High Competition, (Final), Olin 110 Earth Science, Olin 224 Junior Academy, Junior High Competition, Olin 124, Olin 131 NJAS Board/Teacher Meeting, Olin 219 Junior Academy, General Awards Presentations, Smith Callen Conference Center BUSINESS MEETING, OLIN B SOCIAL HOUR for Members, Spouses, and Guests First United Methodist Church, 2723 N 50th Street, Lincoln, NE ANNUAL BANQUET and Presentation of Awards and Scholarships First United Methodist Church, 2723 N 50th Street, Lincoln, N

Aqueous & Non-Aqueous Phase Tracer Migration Through Differing Soil Textures

The National Grid Transco Company sponsored this project in order to promote the understanding of NAPL migration through b-horizon soils and retarding effects upon non aqueous species migration. Soil structure and texture was also studied using conservative (Bromide) and non-conservative (Phosphate) tracers. Experimental data was produced using a laboratory ½ metre scale automated lysimeter designed and constn1cted at Plymouth. The tracers were compared before oil injection, to calibrate differences in soil texture, and after oil injection to detect any changes in the flow patterns caused by the oil injection. It was found that the Crediton, Sollom and Conway soils respectively offered least resistance to the tracers with the non-conservative tracer behaving much more unpredictably than the conservative tracer. After oil injection it could be seen that the oil had heavily retarded the ability of the tracers to migrate from the injection site. This retardation was identified as analogous to perturbations of the soil structure. Statistical analysis of the data showed that the experiments were all internally self consistent and visible patterns could be seen in the corrected data caused by inclusion of oil in the injection site. Methods of dispersal for the oil and tracer are suggested in the concluding chapter with references to the work of previous authors. Development of a hazard assessment framework was facilitated by the simulation of soil structures using a pedo transfer function developed at the National Soils Resource Institute. To allow the modelling of soils the Pore-Cor software had an annealed simplex algorithm integrated into the data inversion engine to allow the simulation of 3-D soil structures using 2-D data from pedo transfer functions or experimentally derived water retention curves. An extensive sensitivity analysis upon the model highlighted limitations, due to the data set the current pedo transfer function is based upon. It was suggested that inclusion of choices of different pedo transfer functions could be used to overcome this problem. A suitable framework was derived for the identification of priority soils using a validated computer model. Experimental data was compared to the simulated data in order to try and develop an understanding of practical upscaling of the data. The use of the "Scaleway" method is discussed in the concluding Chapter.Tbe National Grid Transco pl

Nevada Test Site-Directed Research and Development, FY 2007 Report

The Nevada Test Site-Directed Research and Development (SDRD) program completed a very successful year of research and development activities in FY 2007. Twenty-nine new projects were selected for funding this year, and eight projects started in FY 2006 were brought to conclusion. The total funds expended by the SDRD program were $5.67 million, for an average per-project cost of$153 thousand. An external audit conducted in September 2007 verified that appropriate accounting practices were applied to the SDRD program. Highlights for the year included: programmatic adoption of 8 SDRD-developed technologies; the filing of 9 invention disclosures for innovation evolving from SDRD projects; participation in the tri-Lab Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) and SDRD Symposium that was broadly attended by Nevada Test Site (NTS), National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), LDRD, U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) representatives; peer reviews of all FY 2007 projects; and the successful completion of 37 R&D projects, as presented in this report. In response to a company-wide call, authors throughout the NTS complex submitted 182 proposals for FY 2007 SDRD projects. The SDRD program has seen a dramatic increase in the yearly total of submitted proposals--from 69 in FY 2002 to 182 this year--while the number of projects funded has actually decreased from a program high of 57 in FY 2004. The overall effect of this trend has helped ensure an increasingly competitive program that benefited from a broader set of innovative ideas, making project selection both challenging and rewarding. Proposals were evaluated for technical merit, including such factors as innovation, probability of success, potential benefit, and mission applicability. Authors and reviewers benefited from the use of a shortfalls list entitled the 'NTS Technology Needs Assessment' that was compiled from NTS, National Weapons Laboratory (NWL), and NNSA sources. This tool continues to be of considerable value in aligning the SDRD program with mission priorities, and was expanded in FY 2007 to include technology development needs from the DHS and other agencies with missions closely aligned to that of the NTS