Modeling of evolving textures using granulometries

This chapter describes a statistical approach to classification of dynamic texture images, called parallel evolution functions (PEFs). Traditional classification methods predict texture class membership using comparisons with a finite set of predefined texture classes and identify the closest class. However, where texture images arise from a dynamic texture evolving over time, estimation of a time state in a continuous evolutionary process is required instead. The PEF approach does this using regression modeling techniques to predict time state. It is a flexible approach which may be based on any suitable image features. Many textures are well suited to a morphological analysis and the PEF approach uses image texture features derived from a granulometric analysis of the image. The method is illustrated using both simulated images of Boolean processes and real images of corrosion. The PEF approach has particular advantages for training sets containing limited numbers of observations, which is the case in many real world industrial inspection scenarios and for which other methods can fail or perform badly. [41] G.W. Horgan, Mathematical morphology for analysing soil structure from images, European Journal of Soil Science, vol. 49, pp. 161–173, 1998. [42] G.W. Horgan, C.A. Reid and C.A. Glasbey, Biological image processing and enhancement, Image Processing and Analysis, A Practical Approach, R. Baldock and J. Graham, eds., Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK, pp. 37–67, 2000. [43] B.B. Hubbard, The World According to Wavelets: The Story of a Mathematical Technique in the Making, A.K. Peters Ltd., Wellesley, MA, 1995. [44] H. Iversen and T. Lonnestad. An evaluation of stochastic models for analysis and synthesis of gray-scale texture, Pattern Recognition Letters, vol. 15, pp. 575–585, 1994. [45] A.K. Jain and F. Farrokhnia, Unsupervised texture segmentation using Gabor filters, Pattern Recognition, vol. 24(12), pp. 1167–1186, 1991. [46] T. Jossang and F. Feder, The fractal characterization of rough surfaces, Physica Scripta, vol. T44, pp. 9–14, 1992. [47] A.K. Katsaggelos and T. Chun-Jen, Iterative image restoration, Handbook of Image and Video Processing, A. Bovik, ed., Academic Press, London, pp. 208–209, 2000. [48] M. K¨oppen, C.H. Nowack and G. R¨osel, Pareto-morphology for color image processing, Proceedings of SCIA99, 11th Scandinavian Conference on Image Analysis 1, Kangerlussuaq, Greenland, pp. 195–202, 1999. [49] S. Krishnamachari and R. Chellappa, Multiresolution Gauss-Markov random field models for texture segmentation, IEEE Transactions on Image Processing, vol. 6(2), pp. 251–267, 1997. [50] T. Kurita and N. Otsu, Texture classification by higher order local autocorrelation features, Proceedings of ACCV93, Asian Conference on Computer Vision, Osaka, pp. 175–178, 1993. [51] S.T. Kyvelidis, L. Lykouropoulos and N. Kouloumbi, Digital system for detecting, classifying, and fast retrieving corrosion generated defects, Journal of Coatings Technology, vol. 73(915), pp. 67–73, 2001. [52] Y. Liu, T. Zhao and J. Zhang, Learning multispectral texture features for cervical cancer detection, Proceedings of 2002 IEEE International Symposium on Biomedical Imaging: Macro to Nano, pp. 169–172, 2002. [53] G. McGunnigle and M.J. Chantler, Modeling deposition of surface texture, Electronics Letters, vol. 37(12), pp. 749–750, 2001. [54] J. McKenzie, S. Marshall, A.J. Gray and E.R. Dougherty, Morphological texture analysis using the texture evolution function, International Journal of Pattern Recognition and Artificial Intelligence, vol. 17(2), pp. 167–185, 2003. [55] J. McKenzie, Classification of dynamically evolving textures using evolution functions, Ph.D. Thesis, University of Strathclyde, UK, 2004. [56] S.G. Mallat, Multiresolution approximations and wavelet orthonormal bases of L2(R), Transactions of the American Mathematical Society, vol. 315, pp. 69–87, 1989. [57] S.G. Mallat, A theory for multiresolution signal decomposition: the wavelet representation, IEEE Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence, vol. 11, pp. 674–693, 1989. [58] B.S. Manjunath and W.Y. Ma, Texture features for browsing and retrieval of image data, IEEE Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence, vol. 18, pp. 837–842, 1996. [59] B.S. Manjunath, G.M. Haley and W.Y. Ma, Multiband techniques for texture classification and segmentation, Handbook of Image and Video Processing, A. Bovik, ed., Academic Press, London, pp. 367–381, 2000. [60] G. Matheron, Random Sets and Integral Geometry, Wiley Series in Probability and Mathematical Statistics, John Wiley and Sons, New York, 1975

T is for Territory: A Literature Review of Human Experience in Dramatic and Virtual Spaces

Abstract A theoretical investigation of the spaces where dramatic realities and virtual realities reside is researched and examined. How and for what purpose these locations exist is considered. Is technological space actual, virtual, or somewhere in between and where do our bodies intersect in that dimensional landscape? Can we as practitioners of drama therapy, specifically Developmental Transformations (DvT), be in conversation with the growing dominance of virtual technologies, and where do the boundaries of human territory fit in relation to both? Possible implications for future practice/research are considered. An appendix is included with examples of my art-based response to the research

Accounting for Disposition: A Comparative Case Study of Appraisal Documentation at the National Archives and Records Administration in the United States, Library and Archives Canada, and the National Archives of Australia

Society delegates responsibility for the selection and preservation of records of continuing value to archivists. In accepting this charge, the archival profession enters into a relationship with society in which ensuring public trust through accounting to society for the responsible management of records becomes essential. For archivists to maintain this public trust and to be accountable for appraisal, they must create, maintain, and provide access to documentation of how this process is carried out and of why particular disposition decisions are reached. Documentation that reflects that archivists have weighed relevant legislation, institutional policies, professional best practice, and societal values during the appraisal decision-making process enables archivists to demonstrate that they have arrived at responsible decisions in their selection of records for disposal or for continued retention in archives. Appraisal documentation serves as a safeguard which ensures that disposition of records occurs according to standard procedures and protects against the arbitrary and capricious destruction of records. This dissertation explores the relationship between appraisal documentation and archival accountability through a comparative case study of the units tasked with making disposition decisions at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) in the United States, Library and Archives Canada (LAC), and the National Archives of Australia (NAA). The research developed detailed descriptions of how appraisal is documented at each of the host institutions. Using a content analysis of documentation and interviews with archivists at NARA, LAC, and NAA regarding the appraisal documentation produced by their respective institutions, the study also assessed archivists' views regarding what constitutes documentation of appraisal that is adequate to permit archivists to be held accountable for appraisal in government archives. This comparative analysis produced preliminary guidelines for accountable documentation of appraisal that serve as a starting point for future research related to archival accountability for this core professional function

Recessional Poverty and Segregation in Shelby County, Tennessee

The Great Recession of 2007-2009 and minor recession in 2001-2002 caused increases in financial strife for which the United States is recovering over 10 years later. Memphis ranks high for poverty, yet few studies evaluate Shelby County, Tennessee for poverty and segregation. This project adds to spatial recessional research by investigating changes in poverty and segregation in the county. Through a tract-level analysis, I located poverty and segregation in Shelby County for 2000 and 2009. I hypothesize that Blacks and Hispanics are the poorest of all groups and experience the most residential segregation. Results from 2000 showed that Black and Hispanic residents lived in poverty twice as much as their White and Asian counterparts. As found by Frey and Meyers (2005), White and Asian groups were the most evenly dispersed. In 2009, Black and Hispanic groups had the highest share of tracts that were in poverty and near poverty states

Rhetorical transformations: The figurative language of the industrial revolution.

This dissertation is an examination of the rhetoric and images used in the British industrial rhetoric of the mid-nineteenth century. This body of work encompasses the industrial novel as well as non-fiction works. This study discusses the implications bound up with rhetorically transforming laborers into hands, machines into gods from the Greco-Roman and Christian traditions, and the industrialist into the mythic figure of the self-made man. The final chapter examines the assumptions and contradictions in the rhetoric of the riot, which often involves sublime imagery. My basic thesis is that in the novels of this era rhetoric, through metaphors and imagery, imaginatively serves to erase social history and the scope of human responsibility and power. The more original aspect of my thesis arises from my attention to the tensions and contradictions in the writers' attitudes and how these are imagistically regenerated

Expectant Mothers\u27 Knowledge, Perceptions, Experiences, and Acceptance of Human Donor Milk: A Pilot Study

Title Expectant Mothers\u27 Knowledge, Perceptions, Experiences and Acceptance of Human Donor Milk. A Pilot StudyAuthor J. MarshallObjective The purpose of this study was to evaluate expectant mothers\u27 knowledge, perceptions, experiences and acceptance of Human Donor Milk (HDM).Subjects The sample included 30 low-risk expecting mothers, over the age of 18, who attended prenatal classes at Baptist Memorial Hospital for Women-MemphisMethod A researcher developed survey tool was used to collect data from a convenience sample of 30 low-risk expectant mothers attending one of a series of prenatal classes. Participation was on a volunteer basis and personal indentification was not collected.Results Analysis of data collected is descriptive. Results showed demographics to be highly homogeneous.An overall lack of knowledge of HDM among expectant mothers was evident. With little to no self-reported knowledge regarding HDM, perceptions were limited The majority (97%) of participants were first time mothers and had no experience to account for. However, the majority (70%) of participants reported a willingness to donate excess breastmilk showing an acceptance of HDM use to feed infants when mother\u27s own milk is unavailable.Conclusion In conclusion, an overall lack of self-reported knowledge, perceptions, and experiences regarding the use of HDM to feed infants was found among the participants. However, acceptance of HDM, as it relates to knowledge, warrants further research. Additional research surveying multiple demographics might also shed more light on women\u27s perceptions and knowledge of HDM

Effects of Auditory Perceptual Training on Reading Decoding

The purpose of this experimental study was to determine the effect of auditory perceptual training on reading decoding skills of adolescent students with learning disabilities. The subjects (N=4) were all being served in a self-contained high school setting. Three of the subjects were male and one was female. The subjects were pre­-tested and post-tested using the Test of Auditory Analysis Skills (TAAS) and word identification and word attack subtests of the Woodcock Reading Mastery Test­ Revised(WRMT-R). The data were analyzed using dependent sample t-tests. Significant differences were found on auditory skills (t= -3.66, p\u3c.05), word attack (t=8.3, p\u3c.05) and the basic skills cluster (t=5.14, p\u3c.05). Two limitations of this study were the small number of subjects and duration of the training exercises. Future studies with a larger sample and longer training period are recommended. Another recommendation is to use a single subject method when the sample size is this small

Applications of Modeling and Simulation for Flight Hardware Processing at Kennedy Space Center

The Boeing Design Visualization Group (DVG) is responsible for the creation of highly-detailed representations of both on-site facilities and flight hardware using computer-aided design (CAD) software, with a focus on the ground support equipment (GSE) used to process and prepare the hardware for space. Throughout my ten weeks at this center, I have had the opportunity to work on several projects: the modification of the Multi-Payload Processing Facility (MPPF) High Bay, weekly mapping of the Space Station Processing Facility (SSPF) floor layout, kinematics applications for the Orion Command Module (CM) hatches, and the design modification of the Ares I Upper Stage hatch for maintenance purposes. The main goal of each of these projects was to generate an authentic simulation or representation using DELMIA V5 software. This allowed for evaluation of facility layouts, support equipment placement, and greater process understanding once it was used to demonstrate future processes to customers and other partners. As such, I have had the opportunity to contribute to a skilled team working on diverse projects with a central goal of providing essential planning resources for future center operations