Unimodal late fusion for NIST i-vector challenge on speaker detection

Speaker detection is a very interesting machine learning task for which the latest i-vector challenge has been coordinated by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). A simple late fusion approach for the speaker detection task on the i-vector challenge is presented. The approach is based on the late fusion of scores from the cosine distance method (the baseline) and the scores obtained from linear discriminant analysis. The results show that by adapting the simple late fusion approach, the framework can outperform the baseline score for the decision cost function on the NIST i-vector machine learning challenge

Periodicities in the Daily Proton Fluxes from 2011 to 2019 Measured by the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer on the International Space Station from 1 to 100 GV

We present the precision measurement of the daily proton fluxes in cosmic rays from May 20, 2011 to October 29, 2019 (a total of 2824 days or 114 Bartels rotations) in the rigidity interval from 1 to 100 GV based on 5.5×109 protons collected with the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer aboard the International Space Station. The proton fluxes exhibit variations on multiple timescales. From 2014 to 2018, we observed recurrent flux variations with a period of 27 days. Shorter periods of 9 days and 13.5 days are observed in 2016. The strength of all three periodicities changes with time and rigidity. The rigidity dependence of the 27-day periodicity is different from the rigidity dependences of 9-day and 13.5-day periods. Unexpectedly, the strength of 9-day and 13.5-day periodicities increases with increasing rigidities up to ∼10 GV and ∼20 GV, respectively. Then the strength of the periodicities decreases with increasing rigidity up to 100 GV.</p

Curvelet based automatic segmentation of supraspinatus tendon from ultrasound image: A focused assistive diagnostic method

Background: Disorders of rotator cuff tendons results in acute pain limiting the normal range of motion for shoulder. Of all the tendons in rotator cuff, supraspinatus (SSP) tendon is affected first of any pathological changes. Diagnosis of SSP tendon using ultrasound is considered to be operator dependent with its accuracy being related to operator's level of experience. Methods: The automatic segmentation of SSP tendon ultrasound image was performed to provide focused and more accurate diagnosis. The image processing techniques were employed for automatic segmentation of SSP tendon. The image processing techniques combines curvelet transform and mathematical concepts of logical and morphological operators along with area filtering. The segmentation assessment was performed using true positives rate, false positives rate and also accuracy of segmentation. The specificity and sensitivity of the algorithm was tested for diagnosis of partial thickness tears (PTTs) and full thickness tears (FTTs). The ultrasound images of SSP tendon were taken from medical center with the help of experienced radiologists. The algorithm was tested on 116 images taken from 51 different patients. Results: The accuracy of segmentation of SSP tendon was calculated to be 95.61% in accordance with the segmentation performed by radiologists, with true positives rate of 91.37% and false positives rate of 8.62%. The specificity and sensitivity was found to be 93.6%, 94% and 95%, 95.6% for partial thickness tears and full thickness tears respectively. The proposed methodology was successfully tested over a database of more than 116 US images, for which radiologist assessment and validation was performed. Conclusions: The segmentation of SSP tendon from ultrasound images helps in focused, accurate and more reliable diagnosis which has been verified with the help of two experienced radiologists. The specificity and sensitivity for accurate detection of partial and full thickness tears has been considerably increased after segmentation when compared with existing literature

Forensic use of fingermarks and fingerprints

The aim of this entry is to describe and explain the main forensic uses of fingermarks and fingerprints. It defines the concepts and provides the nomenclature related to forensic dactyloscopy. It describes the structure of the papillary ridges, the organization of the information in three levels, and its use for the fingerprint classification and individualization processes. It focuses on the variability and the distinctiveness of the marks and the prints and the exploitation of these properties in the forensic context. It emphasizes the difference between the properties of the mark and the prints in relation with the individualization process. It describes the current practice for fingermark evidence evaluation and analyzes the limits of forensic evaluation based on deterministic conclusions. It discusses the admissibility of the fingerprint evidence and provides casework examples involving misidentifications. It introduces the results of statistical research based on empirical data, statistical modeling, and an evaluation framework aiming at the description of the strength of evidence. Finally, it puts in perspective the current practice and the results of research and addresses the question of future developments in the field