Blood vessel segmentation in the analysis of retinal and diaphragm images

The segmentation and characterization of structures in medical images represents an important part of the diagnostic and research procedures in medicine. This thesis focuses on the characterization methods in two application fields that make use of two imaging modalities. The first topic is the characterization of the blood vessel structure in the human retina and the second is the characterization of diaphragm movement during breathing. The imaged blood vessel structures are considered important landmarks in both applications. The framework for the retinal image processing and analysis starts with the testing of five publicly available blood vessel segmentation methods for retinal images. The parameters of the methods are optimized on five databases with the ground truth for blood vessels. An approach for predicting the method parameters is proposed based on the optimization results. The parameter prediction approach is then applied to obtain vessel segmentation on a new database and an automatic approach to the blood vessel classification and computation of the arteriovenous ratio is proposed and evaluated on the new database. The framework for the diaphragm image processing and analysis is based on the measurement of diaphragm motion. The motion is characterized by a set of features quantifying the amplitude and frequency of the breathing pattern, as well as a portion of the nonharmonic movements that occur. In addition, a set of static features like the diaphragm slope and height are proposed. Two approaches for the motion measurement are proposed and compared. A statistical evaluation of the proposed features is performed by comparing measurements from people with and without spinal findings. The results from the retinal image processing and analysis revealed the possibility of the successful prediction of the parameters of the blood vessel segmentation methods. The automatic approach for the automatic arteriovenous ratio estimation revealed a stronger association with blood pressure than the manually estimated ratio. The results from the diaphragm image processing and analysis confirmed differences in the position, shape and breathing patterns between the healthy people and people suffering from spinal findings. The blood vessel structure was shown to be a reliable marker for characterizing the diaphragm motion.Katedra kybernetik

Czech pension policy

The transformation of the Czechoslovak predominantly Bismarckian pension system into the Czech predominantly Beveridgean system was influenced by the liberal policy of Klaus’ government and by the creation of a complicated and poorly understandable calculation of both newly granted old-age pensions and indexation (valorization) of pensions. Recently, the marketing approach of politicians on these issues has also contributed to strengthening the levelling of pensions. More than half of Czechs nevertheless prefer ‘Bismarck’ to ‘Beveridge’ [...]

Ski training on supershorties

katedra: KTV; přílohy: CD-Rom; rozsah: 93The thesis creates the methodical row of skiing training for short skiis. It se based on historical facts and previous experience with this problem. It works with the so-called {\clqq}Kurzski Methode`` which has always been discussed amany specialists and which es still topic for discussion. In the first part the thesis describes the historical development of the production and the teaching method for short skiis. The second part is focused on the teaching of beginners on short skiis. It describes here how to teach and use the open method. The third and fundamental part includes excercises for the teachin of carving curve.Diplomová práce vytváří metodickou řadu lyžařské průpravy na krátkých lyžích. Vychází z historických faktů a předchozích zkušeností této problematiky. Opírá se o tzv. Kurzski Methode, která již byla a stále je v odborných kruzích diskutována. V první části popisuje historický vývoj výroby a výuky na krátkých lyžích. Druhá část je zaměřena na výuku začátečníků na krátkých lyžích. Je zde popsáno jak vyučovat otevřenou metodou. Ve třetí a stěžejní části jsou uvedeny cvičení na výuku carvingového oblouku

Extending pension coverage: Tax versus non-tax incentives

This paper compares the design, cost and e?ectiveness of three voluntary approaches for increasing pension coverage. The frst facilitates plan features designed to attract workers. The second provides tax and other fnancial incentives. The third mandates autoenrollment of workers with opt out. The non-tax incentives of plan features in the United States have had little e?ect on increasing coverage. Generous tax incentives in Germany and Czechia have raised coverage but are costly. Mandatory autoenrollment with opt out in the United Kingdom has achieved the highest coverage rate of the three approaches

Evaluation of Publicly Available Blood Vessel Segmentation Methods for Retinal Images

Retinal blood vessel structure is an important indicator of disorders related to diseases, which has motivated the development of various image segmentation methods for the blood vessels. In this study, two supervised and two unsupervised retinal blood vessel segmentation methods are quantitatively compared by using five publicly available databases with the ground truth for the vessels. The parameters of each method were optimized for each database with the motivation to achieve good segmentation performance for the comparison and study the importance of proper selection of parameter values. The results show that parameter optimization does not significantly improve the segmentation performance of the methods when the original data is used. However, the methods’ performance for new data differs significantly. Based on the comparison, Soares method as a supervised approach provided the highest overall accuracy and, thus, the best generalisability. Bankhead and Nguyen methods’ performance were close to each other: Bankhead performed better with ARIADB and STARE, whereas Nguyen was better with DRIVE. Sofka method is available only as an executable and its performance matched the others only with ARIADB

Current Issues of Automobile Insurance

Auto insurance belongs to the most important areas of the insurance market from the quantitative point of view and based on its significance in covering auto-related risks. The significance of damage impact, particularly in liability insurance, requires a high degree of regulation. Standard products, auto liability and collision insurance are following the overall changes in insurance policies and are adjusting to the changing conditions. One of the major issues in the auto insurance in the Czech Republic and internationally is a toughening competition which results in changing insurance premiums. At the same time, new forms of auto insurance are introduced due to technological advances and demands for higher coverage

Management of Crown-related Fractures in Children: An Update Review

Traumatic dental injuries (TDIs) are a serious public health problem. Epidemiology of dental trauma indicates that these injuries are more prevalent in child population of the world. Children are the sufferers in two-thirds of all TDIs observed. Although being a major fraction, crown-related fractures are a less severe form of TDIs with respect to their complications and sequelae. However, as with other types of traumatic injuries, the delay in seeking for immediate care following a traumatic injury and the lack of appropriate treatment may compromise long-term outcomes. This article reviews the occurrence, management, and prognosis of crown-related fractures in primary and permanent teeth in light of the recent literature

Managing operational risk using scenario analysis

The master thesis is dealing with the contemporary issues of operational risk management in financial institutions. Author sets a theoretical basis and legal background of the topic and describes the contemporary practices of managing the operational risk. Author focuses on the scenario analysis as a specific method which is described and evaluated. Scenario analysis is applied on the rogue trading risk. In the thesis there is created a model institution on which author applies the operational risk theory using best practices and expert opinions. The model situation provides the analysis of the processes of the financial institution and choose the suitable measures in order to defend against the risk. The author also analyses the past cases of rogue trading which helps to understand the prevention and the historical significance of the operational risk

Managing operational risk using scenario analysis

Diplomová práce se zabývá aktuálním tématem řízení operačního rizika ve finančních institucích. Autor v práci vymezuje teoretické základy a právní pozadí této problematiky. Dále pak autor popisuje současnou praxi použití jednotlivých metod řízení operačního rizika. Autor se zaměřuje na specifickou metodu analýzy scénářů, která bude podrobena důkladnému zhodnocení. Analýza scénářů je zkoumána na případu rizika rogue tradingu. V práci je vytvořena modelová finanční instituce a na ní pak autor demonstruje uplatnění teorie řízení rizik za použití současných best practices a expertních odhadů. Model umožní analyzovat proces postupu finanční instituce a zvolit vhodná opatření ve vztahu k obraně a následnému řešení rogue tradingu. V rámci práce také autor provádí analýzu realizace operačního rizika rogue tradingu v minulosti, která umožňuje blíže pochopit problematiku prevence a historickou významnost těchto událostí k tvorbě metodiky k řízení operačního rizika.The master thesis is dealing with the contemporary issues of operational risk management in financial institutions. Author sets a theoretical basis and legal background of the topic and describes the contemporary practices of managing the operational risk. Author focuses on the scenario analysis as a specific method which is described and evaluated. Scenario analysis is applied on the rogue trading risk. In the thesis there is created a model institution on which author applies the operational risk theory using best practices and expert opinions. The model situation provides the analysis of the processes of the financial institution and choose the suitable measures in order to defend against the risk. The author also analyses the past cases of rogue trading which helps to understand the prevention and the historical significance of the operational risk