Speeding up structure from motion on large scenes using parallelizable partitions

Structure from motion based 3D reconstruction takes a lot of time for large scenes which consist of thousands of input images. We propose a method that speeds up the reconstruction of large scenes by partitioning it into smaller scenes, and then recombining those. The main benefit here is that each subscene can be optimized in parallel. We present a widely usable subdivision method, and show that the difference between the result after partitioning and recombination, and the state of the art structure from motion reconstruction on the entire scene, is negligible

Comparison of funding and demand for the conservation of the charismatic Koala with those for the critically endangered wombat Lasiorhinus krefftii

This study contrasts the actual conservation spending and the Australian public’s demand for conservation funding for two Australian mammal species, the koala and the northern hairy-nosed wombat. It involves a survey of 204 members of the Australian public. Willingness to fund conservation action to protect the northern hairy-nosed wombat was found to be higher than that for the koala despite the koala’s immense popularity. The critically endangered status of the northern-hairy nosed wombat and the more secure conservation status of the koala is a factor likely to have influenced the comparative willingness-to-pay decisions. Actual annual conservation expenditure for both species is lower than the estimated aggregate willingness-to-pay for their conservation. Furthermore, conservation funding for the koala is much more than that for the northern hairy-nosed wombat even though the estimated public willingness-to-pay (demand) for funding koala conservation was less than for this wombat species. Reasons for this are suggested. They may also help to explain misalignment between demand for conservation funding of other species involving differences in charisma and endangerment