Super-Resolution Enhancement of Digital Video

SR from digital video is a relatively new field, in only its third decade of existence. There is no doubt that as imaging sensor technologies, optical fabrication techniques, and computational algorithms mature, SR will find its way into digital video products such as cameras and digital cable set-top boxes. These papers on the fundamental SR topics of image registration, regularization, photometric diversity, detector nonuniformity, compression, optical design, and performance metrics serve as pioneers in the dynamic and evolving field of SR image reconstruction research and development. We are proud to present them to the image and video processing research community. (Refers to papers appearing in the same issue of the EURASIP Journal on Advances in Signal Processing in which this editorial appeared.

The use of hand-held computers (PDAs) to audit and validate eradication of a post-border detection of Khapra Beetle, Trogoderma granarium, in Western Australia

Most of Australia’s agricultural produce is exported. Demonstrating freedom from certain plant and animal pests and diseases is critical to securing and maintaining market access. Surveillance is an important tool in gaining market access and accordingly exporting countries now need to provide accurate, credible evidence to confirm pest freedom status.In the past nearly all field-collected surveillance information was recorded manually to paper reducing the rate of capture, integrity, conformity as well as security of the data. This paper describes the development of pest surveillance data collection software and hardware using PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants) to provide auditing, validation, chain of evidence and increase the volume of data collected as well as its integrity through relational databases and seamless data transfer to corporate systems. The system’s first deployment was during a T. granarium eradication. The khapra beetle (Trogoderma granarium) is one of the most serious pests of stored grain and is a regulated quarantine pest in most countries around the world. In April 2007, there was a post-border detection of T. granarium larvae and adults in a Western Australian residence. Immediate and uncompromising action was taken to quarantine the home and fumigate it with methyl-bromide at an internationally established rate known to control T. granarium (AQIS T9056). A two-year T. granarium trapping program was undertaken which used PDA software to provide evidence of complete eradication via 1273 trap inspections. This achievement was supported by GPSlocated traps, digital voice navigation itineraries, digital time and date stamps, field printed barcode labels, site imagery, all in a single hand-held unit. Keywords: T. granarium, Khapra beetle, Eradication, Biosecurity, PDA, Surveillanc

Impact of Detector-element Active-area Shape and Fill Factor on Image Sampling, Restoration, and Super-Resolution

In many undersampled imaging systems, spatial integration from the individual detector elements is the dominant component of the system point spread function (PSF). Conventional focal plane arrays (FPAs) utilize square detector elements with a nearly 100% fill factor, where fill factor is defined as the fraction of the detector element area that is active in light detection. A large fill factor is generally considered to be desirable because more photons are collected for a given pitch, and this leads to a higher signal-to-noise-ratio (SNR). However, the large active area works against super-resolution (SR) image restoration by acting as an additional low pass filter in the overall PSF when modeled on the SR sampling grid. A high fill factor also tends to increase blurring from pixel cross-talk. In this paper, we study the impact of FPA detector-element shape and fill factor on SR. A detailed modulation transfer function analysis is provided along with a number of experimental results with both simulated data and real data acquired with a midwave infrared (MWIR) imaging system. We demonstrate the potential advantage of low fill factor detector elements when combined with SR image restoration. Our results suggest that low fill factor circular detector elements may be the best choice. New video results are presented using robust adaptive Wiener filter SR processing applied to data from a commercial MWIR imaging system with both high and low detector element fill factors

Geologic and Hydrogeologic Framework of Regional Aquifers in the Twin Mountains, Paluxy, and Woodbine Formations Near the SSC Site, North-Central Texas (Draft)

Water-utility districts and municipalities in North-Central Texas recently obtained as much as 100 percent of their water supply from deep regional aquifers in Cretaceous formations. Use of groundwater from the aquifers during the past century has resulted in water-level declines of as much as 800 ft (243.8 m) in Dallas and Tarrant Counties. Future continued water-level decline throughout North-Central Texas will depend on the amount of groundwater produced to help meet increased water-supply needs for municipal, industrial, and agricultural growth. It is probable that a significant part of the increased water demand will be met by groundwater. The objectives of this study were to develop a hydrologic model of the complex interrelations among aquifer stratigraphy, hydrologic properties, and groundwater availability and, given expected patterns of future groundwater demand, to predict water-level changes in the regional aquifers that underlie North-Central Texas. A cross-sectional model of both aquifers and confining layers was used to evaluate model boundary conditions and the vertical hydrologic properties of the confining layers. Results and insights from the cross-sectional model were used in a three-dimensional simulation of groundwater flow in the deep aquifers. The layers of a regional confining system were not explicitly included in the three-dimensional model. Hydrogeologic properties were assigned based on aquifer test results and stratigraphic mapping of sandstone distribution in the aquifer units.Bureau of Economic Geolog

Fault and Joint Measurements in Austin Chalk, SuperConducting Super Collider Site, Texas

Structure maps of 9.4 miles of nearly continuous tunnel excavations and more than 10 miles of other exposures and excavations in the Austin Chalk at the Superconducting Super Collider (SSC) site in Ellis County, Texas, record normal fault and joint populations in the subsurface within the northern segment of the Balcones Fault Zone that has unmatched resolution for such a long traverse. Small faults (less than 10 feet throw) occur in clusters or swarms that have as many as 24 faults. Fault swarms are as much as 2,000 feet wide, and spacing between swarms ranges from 800 to 2,000 feet, averaging about 1,000 feet. Predominantly northeast-trending joints are in swarms spaced 500 to more than 21,000 feet apart.Bureau of Economic Geolog

The Comparative Political Economy of Basel III in Europe

The Basel III Accord was the centrepiece of the international regulatory response to the global financial crisis, setting new capital requirements for internationally active banks. This paper explains the divergent preferences on Basel III of national regulators in three countries that approximate what are frequently presented as distinct varieties of capitalism in Europe — Germany, the United Kingdom and France. It is argued that national regulators setting post crisis capital requirements had to reconcile three inter-related and potentially conflicting objectives: banking sector stability, the competitiveness of national banks and short to medium term economic growth. The different national preferences on Basel III reflected how different national regulators defined and pursued these objectives, which in turn reflected the structure of national banking systems — specifically, systemic patterns of bank capital and bank-industry ties

Electron impact double ionization of helium from classical trajectory calculations

With a recently proposed quasiclassical ansatz [Geyer and Rost, J. Phys. B 35 (2002) 1479] it is possible to perform classical trajectory ionization calculations on many electron targets. The autoionization of the target is prevented by a M\o{}ller type backward--forward propagation scheme and allows to consider all interactions between all particles without additional stabilization. The application of the quasiclassical ansatz for helium targets is explained and total and partially differential cross sections for electron impact double ionization are calculated. In the high energy regime the classical description fails to describe the dominant TS1 process, which leads to big deviations, whereas for low energies the total cross section is reproduced well. Differential cross sections calculated at 250 eV await their experimental confirmation.Comment: LaTeX, 22 pages, 10 figures, submitted to J. Phys.

Geologic and Hydrogeologic Framework of Regional Aquifers in the Twin Mountains, Paluxy, and Woodbine Formations Near the SSC Site, North-Central Texas

Water-utility districts and many municipalities in North-Central Texas recently obtained as much as 100 percent of their water supply from deep regional aquifers in Cretaceous formations. Use of groundwater from the aquifers during the past century has resulted in water-level declines of as much as 850 ft (259 m), especially in Dallas and Tarrant Counties. Future water-level changes will depend on the amount of groundwater produced to help meet growing water-supply needs for municipalities, industries, and agriculture throughout North-Central Texas. It is probable that a significant part of the increased water demand will be met by groundwater although at less than historic rates. The objective of this study was to develop a predictive tool for studying the effect of future groundwater production from regional aquifers in North-Central Texas. To do this, we reviewed the history of groundwater development, hydrogeology of the regional aquifers, and constructed numerical models of groundwater flow. A cross-sectional model of both aquifers and confining layers was used to evaluate model boundary conditions and the vertical hydrologic properties of the confining layers. Results and insights from the cross-sectional model were used in a three-dimensional simulation of groundwater flow in the deep aquifers. The layers of the regional confining system were not explicitly included in the three-dimensional model. Hydrogeologic properties were assigned on the basis of aquifer test results and stratigraphic mapping of sandstone distribution in the aquifer units.Bureau of Economic Geolog

An argument for the use of Aristotelian method in bioethics

The main claim of this paper is that the method outlined and used in Aristotle's Ethics is an appropriate and credible one to use in bioethics. Here “appropriate” means that the method is capable of establishing claims and developing concepts in bioethics and “credible” that the method has some plausibility, it is not open to obvious and immediate objection. It begins by suggesting why this claim matters and then gives a brief outline of Aristotle's method. The main argument is made in three stages. First, it is argued that Aristotelian method is credible because it compares favourably with alternatives. In this section it is shown that Aristotelian method is not vulnerable to criticisms that are made both of methods that give a primary place to moral theory (such as utilitarianism) and those that eschew moral theory (such as casuistry and social science approaches). As such, it compares favourably with these other approaches that are vulnerable to at least some of these criticisms. Second, the appropriateness of Aristotelian method is indicated through outlining how it would deal with a particular case. Finally, it is argued that the success of Aristotle's philosophy is suggestive of both the credibility and appropriateness of his method.</p

O adsorption and incipient oxidation of the Mg(0001) surface

First principles density functional calculations are used to study the early oxidation stages of the Mg(0001) surface for oxygen coverages 1/16 <= Theta <= 3 monolayers. It is found that at very low coverages O is incorporated below the topmost Mg layer in tetrahedral sites. At higher oxygen-load the binding in on-surface sites is increased but at one monolayer coverage the on-surface binding is still about 60 meV weaker than for subsurface sites. The subsurface octahedral sites are found to be unfavorable compared to subsurface tetrahedral sites and to on-surface sites. At higher coverages oxygen adsorbs both under the surface and up. Our calculations predict island formation and clustering of incorporated and adsorbed oxygen in agreement with previous calculations. The calculated configurations are compared with the angle-scanned x-ray photoelectron diffraction experiment to determine the geometrical structure of the oxidized Mg(0001) surface.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figure