Recognizing Visual Categories by Commonality and Diversity

Visual categories refer to categories of objects or scenes in the computer vision literature. Building a well-performing classifier for visual categories is challenging as it requires a high level of generalization as the categories have large within class variability. We present several methods to build generalizable classifiers for visual categories by exploiting commonality and diversity of labeled samples and the cat- egory definitions to improve category classification accuracy. First, we describe a method to discover and add unlabeled samples from auxil- iary sources to categories of interest for building better classifiers. In the literature, given a pool of unlabeled samples, the samples to be added are usually discovered based on low level visual signatures such as edge statistics or shape or color by an unsupervised or semi-supervised learning framework. This method is inexpensive as it does not require human intervention, but generally does not provide useful information for accuracy improvement as the selected samples are visually similar to the existing set of samples. The samples added by active learning, on the other hand, provide different visual aspects to categories and contribute to learning a better classifier, but are expensive as they need human labeling. To obtain high quality samples with less annotation cost, we present a method to discover and add samples from unlabeled image pools that are visually diverse but coherent to cat- egory definition by using higher level visual aspects, captured by a set of learned attributes. The method significantly improves the classification accuracy over the baselines without human intervention. Second, we describe now to learn an ensemble of classifiers that captures both commonly shared information and diversity among the training samples. To learn such ensemble classifiers, we first discover discriminative sub-categories of the la- beled samples for diversity. We then learn an ensemble of discriminative classifiers with a constraint that minimizes the rank of the stacked matrix of classifiers. The resulting set of classifiers both share the category-wide commonality and preserve diversity of subcategories. The proposed ensemble classifier improves recognition accuracy significantly over the baselines and state-of-the-art subcategory based en- semble classifiers, especially for the challenging categories. Third, we explore the commonality and diversity of semantic relationships of category definitions to improve classification accuracy in an efficient manner. Specif- ically, our classification model identifies the most helpful relational semantic queries to discriminatively refine the model by a small amount of semantic feedback in inter- active iterations. We improve the classification accuracy on challenging categories that have very small numbers of training samples via transferred knowledge from other related categories that have a lager number of training samples by solving a semantically constrained transfer learning optimization problem. Finally, we summarize ideas presented and discuss possible future work

Eroticism in and of the City: The Question of Approach

Discussions of eroticism usually commence with references to Georges Bataille and his L’Erotisme, whose first English edition was published under the title Death and Sensuality: A Study of Eroticism and the Taboo (1962), thus encouraging analyses in terms of transgression. This article opens with a quotation from Zygmunt Bauman’s essay, “On Postmodern Uses of Sex,” which reflects on the instability of the concept and emphasizes its contextualization. This openly declared incongruity raises questions of applicability. What is meant by eroticism today, i.e. in and after postmodernism? The article seeks to explore the relevance of the term in studies of urban drama and tries to suggest a workable approach that would differentiate between the commonly observable erotic material found on display within the premises of the city and the eroticism of the city itself. In the latter case the erotic relationship involves the materiality of the urban context and its user. The essay, focusing on drama, assumes that plays are written for the stage-their proper mode of existence-and deems it necessary to include the city/theatre and city/drama interdependence as well as the nexus of concepts such as urban drama and its genre restrictions into the following analysis

THE CHARACTERISTICS OF ENGLISH ADVERTISEMENTS CREATED BY STUDENTS OF BUSINESS ENGLISH CLASS AT PGRI UNIVERSITY SEMARANG. LEMBAGA PENELITIAN DAN PENGABDIAN PADA MASYARAKAT, UNIVERSITAS PGRI SEMARANG

This study investigates the characteristics of English advertisements created by the students of Business English Class at the University of PGRI Semarang. There were 25 students taken as the sample since they had been trained how to analyse and make English advertisement. At the end of the training session, 60 pictures of educational, tourism, and health products were distributed and the students were asked to create their own advertisement under each picture. There were only 30advertisement texts eligible for further analysis. The analysis was done to its lexical aspects, syntactical features as well as its rhetorical devices. The results show that most of the students were able to make their own advertisement texts but most of the words are verb and noun (90%), simple sentence (93%), and only 2 out of 30 advertisement (6.6%) used rhetorical devices. They need more time to practice writing informative and attractive advertisement text. Thus, for the next class session, it is recommended that the lesson materials in the Business English shouldbe divided into two mainstreams: Business Writing and Business Advertisement and each mainstream should be taught for 7 class sessions. By having such division, the students will have an ample time to do some advertisement-text practices

Prospects for Theranostics in Neurosurgical Imaging: Empowering Confocal Laser Endomicroscopy Diagnostics via Deep Learning

Confocal laser endomicroscopy (CLE) is an advanced optical fluorescence imaging technology that has the potential to increase intraoperative precision, extend resection, and tailor surgery for malignant invasive brain tumors because of its subcellular dimension resolution. Despite its promising diagnostic potential, interpreting the gray tone fluorescence images can be difficult for untrained users. In this review, we provide a detailed description of bioinformatical analysis methodology of CLE images that begins to assist the neurosurgeon and pathologist to rapidly connect on-the-fly intraoperative imaging, pathology, and surgical observation into a conclusionary system within the concept of theranostics. We present an overview and discuss deep learning models for automatic detection of the diagnostic CLE images and discuss various training regimes and ensemble modeling effect on the power of deep learning predictive models. Two major approaches reviewed in this paper include the models that can automatically classify CLE images into diagnostic/nondiagnostic, glioma/nonglioma, tumor/injury/normal categories and models that can localize histological features on the CLE images using weakly supervised methods. We also briefly review advances in the deep learning approaches used for CLE image analysis in other organs. Significant advances in speed and precision of automated diagnostic frame selection would augment the diagnostic potential of CLE, improve operative workflow and integration into brain tumor surgery. Such technology and bioinformatics analytics lend themselves to improved precision, personalization, and theranostics in brain tumor treatment.Comment: See the final version published in Frontiers in Oncology here: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fonc.2018.00240/ful

Using IDI Guided Development to Increase Intercultural Competence

The qualitative case study examined Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI) pre-post test data and responses from a sample of preservice teachers. The study focused on the effect of the process of administering IDI Guided Development to increase the intercultural competence of preservice teachers. The study was based on the conceptual framework of the Intercultural Development Continuum (IDC), adapted from the Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity originally proposed by Dr. Milton Bennett. In addition, intercultural competence models, theories, practices, and strategies were examined, including Deardorff’s Developing and Assessing Intercultural Competence Models, Kolb’s Experiential Learning Theory, Mezirow’s Transformative Learning Theory, Loden’s Dimensions of Diversity Wheel, and Weigl’s Cultural Self-Study. The findings of the study revealed how effective IDI Guided Development, a comprehensive five-step developmental process, combined with individualized coaching guidance by an IDI Qualified Administrator, produced impressive increases in intercultural competence development. Drawing on many educational theories and models, the study results demonstrated the importance of using a combination of a high-quality assessment tool, a transformative experiential learning process for change, measurable goals and outcomes, and a coach to facilitate the development of intercultural competence

Navigating Reconciliation through Cultural Flows for Industrialized Free-Flowing Rivers

Cultural flows are an emergent water policy tool gaining recognition for their potential to overcome the continued marginalization of Indigenous peoples’ interests in Canadian freshwater governance, but quantified cultural flows are rarely adopted by state governments. Using community-based participatory research and leveraging an Ethical Space Framework, this research provides practical insight into the adoption of cultural flows in ways mutually acceptable to state governments and Indigenous peoples. The practical insight was gained by demonstrating the significance of a quantified cultural flows example termed Aboriginal Navigation Flows from Alberta and the institutional influences on its adoption by a state government. Data collected through documents and interviews revealed that ANF were significant because they translated an Indigenous conception of wellness connecting river navigability, boating, human relationships, human-waterscape relationships, Indigenous rights, and self-determined change adaptation. These insights into ANF significance showed how cultural flows could meaningfully shape freshwater governance in which environmental flow assessments for free-flowing rivers are undertaken. Data collected through documents and interviews and analyzed using the Implementing Innovation Framework revealed that structural institutions critically influenced ANF adoption. Joint communications by collaborating Indigenous peoples worked to overcome state government resistance grounded in vested economic interests. To reshape structural institutions, cultural drivers of ANF adoption could be better leveraged by overcoming individual barriers to ANF adoption. Collectively, these insights into ANF adoption show how freshwater governance arenas may become ethical spaces