687 research outputs found

    A machine vision approach to rock fragmentation analysis

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    Bibliography: p. 217-223.[pp. i - iv missing] This thesis is concerned with the development of an instrument for the purpose of performing online measurement of rock size distribution using machine vision. This instrument has application in the gold mining industry where it could be used to measure the fragmentation of gold ore on a conveyor belt feed to an autogenous mill, for the purpose of controlling the mill. The gold ore can range in size from fine material (< 20mm) to very large rocks (0.5m). A machine vision approach is only capable of directly measuring the projected area of particles at the surface of the rock-stream. A volume distribution has to be estimated from this using a stereological method. These methods have been investigated previously and are typically error prone. They have not been investigated here. An investigation of lighting demonstrates that a diffuse lighting arrangement is suitable for this application. This would have two advantages: specular reflection from wet material is suppressed; and intensity values can be used to predict the orientation of the surface of the particles. A computational structure has been developed to identify and delineate rocks in an image for the purpose of measuring their areas. It is based on the human visual system in that it consists of a low-level preattentive vision stage and a higher-level stage of attention focusing. Multiscalar image processing techniques have also been integrated in order to improve the detection of rocks across a wide range of sizes. A performance advantage can be obtained in this way because all the algorithms can be better matched to the size of the objects being detected. Results have been obtained with an average true detection rate of 69 and a further close miss rate of 14 , with very few false alarms. The overall result is that the measured projected area distribution closely matches the true value for each test image

    The Scale of Networks?: Local Climate Coalitions

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    The Inhuman Overhang: On Differential Heterogenesis and Multi-Scalar Modeling

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    As a philosophical paradigm, differential heterogenesis offers us a novel descriptive vantage with which to inscribe Deleuze’s virtuality within the terrain of “differential becoming,” conjugating “pure saliences” so as to parse economies, microhistories, insurgencies, and epistemological evolutionary processes that can be conceived of independently from their representational form. Unlike Gestalt theory’s oppositional constructions, the advantage of this aperture is that it posits a dynamic context to both media and its analysis, rendering them functionally tractable and set in relation to other objects, rather than as sedentary identities. Surveying the genealogy of differential heterogenesis with particular interest in the legacy of Lautman’s dialectic, I make the case for a reading of the Deleuzean virtual that departs from an event-oriented approach, galvanizing Sarti and Citti’s dynamic a priori vis-à-vis Deleuze’s philosophy of difference. Specifically, I posit differential heterogenesis as frame with which to examine our contemporaneous epistemic shift as it relates to multi-scalar computational modeling while paying particular attention to neuro-inferential modes of inductive learning and homologous cognitive architecture. Carving a bricolage between Mark Wilson’s work on the “greediness of scales” and Deleuze’s “scales of reality”, this project threads between static ecologies and active externalism vis-à-vis endocentric frames of reference and syntactical scaffolding

    From the human to the planetary

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    This is largely a theoretical, speculative essay that takes on the question of what ‘care’ looks like at a moment when climate change is increasingly taking center stage in public and political discussions. Starting with two new practices, namely, humanitarian care for nonhumans and One Health collaborations, I seek to determine what forms of political care can incorporate the well-being of future generations and future iterations of the earth. After an exploration of One Health as an approach to planetary care, I ask what its parts enable us to think, despite its limitations; I focus on the new human-nonhuman assemblages connected through different biosocial models, such as neuroscience or immunology, to see how these scientific theories might enable new possibilities. I argue that a focus on biological ecologies at different scales – as opposed to ethicomoral categories like humanity – can open the way to a larger imaginary of human and nonhuman flourishing and a space for nonmoralistic politics

    The Design and Implementation of a Yield Monitor for Sweetpotatoes

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    A study of the soil characteristics, weather conditions, and effect of management skills on the yield of the agricultural crop requires site-specific details, which involves large amount of labor and resources, compared to the traditional whole field based analysis. This thesis discusses the design and implemention of yield monitor for sweetpotatoes grown in heavy clay soil. A data acquisition system is built and image segmentation algorithms are implemented. The system performed with an R-Square value of 0.80 in estimating the yield. The other main contribution of this thesis is to investigate the effectiveness of statistical methods and neural networks to correlate image-based size and shape to the grade and weight of the sweetpotatoes. An R-Square value of 0.88 and 0.63 are obtained for weight and grade estimations respectively using neural networks. This performance is better compared to statistical methods with an R-Square value of 0.84 weight analysis and 0.61 in grade estimation

    Digital imaging techniques for recording and analysing prehistoric rock art panels in Galicia (NW Iberia)

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    Several works have highlighted the relevance of 3D modelling techniques for the study of rock art, especially in case of deteriorated state of preservation. This paper presents a methodological approach to accurate document two Bronze Age rock art panels in Galicia (Spain), using photogrammetry SfM. The main aim is to show the application of digital enhancement techniques which have allowed the accurate depiction of the motifs and the correction of previous calques, focusing on the application of the exaggerated shading as a novel analytical method

    LOCAL AND STATE CLIMATE INITIATIVES IN LOUISIANA SINCE 2005: CONTENT AND THEMATIC ANALYSES

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    Louisiana is uniquely exposed to severe weather because of its geography and climate. Louisiana’s extreme weather is exacerbated by anthropogenic climate change, which will worsen in the future. The risks its population and environment are exposed to has generated several policies and planning documents, nine of which are analyzed in this thesis. Three plans are from the state level, three are from the parish level, and three are from the urban (New Orleans) level. These planning documents pose various adaptation and mitigation actions to ameliorate and address multiple climate issues. These actions utilize specific mitigation strategies. The content and thematic analyses investigate how the plans succeed and fail to address climate hazards through these actions. The qualitative analyses ask how the plans address climate hazards through mitigation and adaptation actions. The thematic analysis found seven themes from the nine plans represented by data taken directly from the planning documents. The content analysis used specific mitigation and adaptation phrases in a word and phrase count to investigate the volume of topics. Infrastructure was the primary result of adaptation and mitigation actions from both analyses across state and local levels. Equity was the least discussed theme across the nine plans. Louisiana is a high-emitting state where industry produces more than half of its emissions. This was not addressed in any actions. Anthropogenic climate change was recognized but not addressed in the adaptation and mitigation actions. These results suggest that extractive industry (material, chemical, and non-renewable energies) prioritizes economic and social policies over climate issues and the coastal population
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