Super-resolution of hyperspectral images using local spectral unmixing

International audienceFor many remote sensing applications it is preferable to have images with both high spectral and spatial resolutions. On this regards, hyperspectral and multispectral images have complementary characteristics in terms of spectral and spatial resolutions. In this paper we propose an approach for the fusion of low spatial resolution hyperspectral images with high spatial resolution multispectral images in order to obtain superresolution (spatial and spectral) hyperspectral images. The proposed approach is based on the assumption that, since both hyperspectral and multispectral images acquired on the same scene, the corresponding endmembers should be the same. On a first step the hyperspectral image is spectrally downsampled in order to match the multispectral one. Then an endmember extraction algorithm is performed on the downsampled hyperspectral image and the successive abundance estimation is performed on the multispectral one. Finally, the extracted endmembers are up-sampled back to the original hyperspectral space and then used to reconstruct the super-resolution hyperspectral image according to the abundances obtained from the multispectral image

Repeatability and Reproducibility of Peripapillary Choroidal Thickness Using a Medical Image-Processing Software

Although choroid has been shown to have a vital role in the pathophysiology of many ocular diseases, its role in the pathogenesis of several other conditions remains uncertain. The authors propose a novel methodology to establish a more accurate Peripapillary Choroidal Thickness (PPCT), using an image-processing software. This study sought to evaluate the reproducibility and repeatability of PPCT evaluation with ImageJ software in healthy volunteers. Forty-eight eyes of 24 volunteers were subjected to PPCT area determination, after imaging acquisition and recording with Spectral-domain Optical Coherence Tomography (SD-OCT) Heidelberg Spectralis®, during two different sessions, by two blinded assessors. The age of the subjects was 29.2 ± 4.5 years (mean ± SD). The Coefï¬cient of Repeatability (CR) average measurements of PPCT area was 17.06 mm2 and 9.48 mm2 correspondingly, for the ï¬rst and second examiners. Intra-class Correlation Coefï¬cient (ICC) was 0.994 (95% CI 0.989 to 0.997) and 0.998 (95% CI 0.997 to 0.999). Inter-observer Concordance Correlation Coefï¬cient (CCC) was 0.998 (95% CI 0.996 to 0.999) for both examiners. Intra-observer CCC ranged from 0.997 (95% CI 0.996 to 0.999) to 0.998 (95% CI 0.997 to 0.999), correspondingly, for the first and second examiners. The PPCT quantification by means of the proposed methodology showed good inter- and intra-observer agreement for both operators, indicating feasibility and good reproducibility of the proposed methodology. This approach might be used in different clinical settings and potentially contributes to elucidation of the choroid role in ocular pathology

Hyperspectral super-resolution of locally low rank images from complementary multisource data

International audienceRemote sensing hyperspectral images (HSI) are quite often low rank, in the sense that the data belong to a low dimensional subspace/manifold. This has been recently exploited for the fusion of low spatial resolution HSI with high spatial resolution multispectral images (MSI) in order to obtain super-resolution HSI. Most approaches adopt an unmixing or a matrix factorization perspective. The derived methods have led to state-of-the-art results when the spectral information lies in a low dimensional subspace/manifold. However, if the subspace/manifold dimensionality spanned by the complete data set is large, i.e., larger than the number of multispectral bands, the performance of these methods decrease mainly because the underlying sparse regression problem is severely ill-posed. In this paper, we propose a local approach to cope with this difficulty. Fundamentally, we exploit the fact that real world HSI are locally low rank, that is, pixels acquired from a given spatial neighborhood span a very low dimensional subspace/manifold, i.e., lower or equal than the number of multispectral bands. Thus, we propose to partition the image into patches and solve the data fusion problem independently for each patch. This way, in each patch the subspace/manifold dimensionality is low enough such that the problem is not ill-posed anymore. We propose two alternative approaches to define the hyperspectral super-resolution via local dictionary learning using endmember induction algorithms (HSR-LDL-EIA). We also explore two alternatives to define the local regions, using sliding windows and binary partition trees. The effectiveness of the proposed approaches is illustrated with synthetic and semi real data

Proposta de normalização de uma empresa do ramo de transporte rodoviário de cargas : um estudo de caso

Orientador: Sergio BulgacovMonografia (Especialização) - Universidade Federal do Paraná, Setor de Ciências Sociais Aplicadas, Curso de Especialização em ControladoriaResumo: O segmento de cargas rodoviárias apresenta-se com diversificadas modalidades de operacionalização dentro e fora das organizações. Os "ditos" profissionais do transporte rodoviário de cargas adquiriram experiência profissional no dia-a-dia, executando atividades na coleta e entrega de mercadorias de um cliente denominado no segmento como sendo de origem, ou seja, aquele que realiza uma venda, em cuja entrega necessita-se da utilização do serviço de transportador de qualquer natureza (rodoviário, aéreo, marítimo, fluvial) até o cliente de destino, que é aquele que procede a aquisição da mercadoria. Numa operação como esta, além das modalidades de cargas citadas (coleta e entrega), apareceram outras, tais omo: manuseio, distribuição, encaminhamento, utilização de formulários necessários e até obrigatórios para o transportador, tal qual o conhecimento de transporte rodoviário de cargas, documento este denominado como sendo a nota fiscal do transportador, acompanhado por um formulário de manifesto de carga, onde se pode relacionar os conhecimentos emitidos para uma mesma localidade. Com a evolução tecnológica gerada pela abertura dos mercados comuns, houve a necessidade dos segmentos, para gerar continuidade de seus negócios, em aprimorar seus controles e a buscarem a profissionalização de suas empresas, deixando de lado a aprendizagem quotidiana adquirida longinquamente com anos de serviço e pondo em prática o profissionalismo nas operações, através da aplicação da disciplina de se organizar e definir metodologias padrões com vistas a normalização de seus procedimentos operacionais e administrativos, objetivando a mudança das pessoas envolvidas no processo. Para a empresa "AB" definiu-se que a adronização de seus procedimentos adviria da implementação e aplicação de um manual para o transporte de cargas rodoviárias, contemplando o ciclo de uma operação com aplicação de todas as modalidades de cargas, desde o cliente que originou a operação, passando pela unidade de negócio que dará seqüência e encaminhamento até seu destino, no atendimento operacional que pode iniciar na técnica de atender um telefonema de cliente até na realização de uma operação especial, também na aplicação e uso de recursos informatizados, advindos de software específicos para a transmissão de dados entre unidades operacionais, visando agilidade na recepção das informações e por fim na padronização documental, aplicados específica e coerentemente nas operações de transporte rodoviário de cargas. O resultado obtido pela empresa "AB" com a implementação do trabalho, que se originou com a manualização das operações de cargas, foi a melhoria profissional dos funcionários que começaram a executar atividades visando o processo de qualidade que uma carga gera, os benefícios financeiros com as reduções dos processos de indenizações, ocasionados por danos, avarias, extravias, além de outros no transporte de cargas, bem como pela satisfação dos clientes em trabalhar com a empresa "AB

Foeniculum vulgare Essential Oils: Chemical Composition, Antioxidant and Antimicrobial Activities

The essential oils from Foeniculum vulgare commercial aerial parts and fruits were isolated by hydrodistillation, with different distillation times (30 min, I h, 2 h and 3 h), and analyzed by GC and GC-MS. The antioxidant ability was estimated using four distinct methods. Antibacterial activity was determined by the agar diffusion method. Remarkable differences, and worrying from the quality and safety point of view, were detected in the essential oils. trans-Anethole (31-36%), alpha-pinene (14-20%) and limonene (11-13%) were the main components of the essentials oil isolated from F. vulgare dried aerial parts, whereas methyl chavicol (= estragole) (79-88%) was dominant in the fruit oils. With the DPPH method the plant oils showed better antioxidant activity than the fruits oils. With the TBARS method and at higher concentrations, fennel essential oils showed a pro-oxidant activity. None of the oils showed a hydroxyl radical scavenging capacity >50%, but they showed an ability to inhibit 5-lipoxygenase. The essential oils showed a very low antimicrobial activity. In general, the essential oils isolated during 2 h were as effective, from the biological activity point of view, as those isolated during 3 h.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Efecto del extracto natural de arándono rojo en la formación de un biofilm y en la viabilidad bacteriana en un modelo validado de biofilm oral in vitro

Objetivos Investigaciones previas han demostrado la capacidad antimicrobiana de los extractos de arándano rojo frente a varios patógenos periodontales en estado planctónico. No obstante, la literatura existente sobre ese efecto en patógenos periodontales organizados en biofilm in vitro es escasa. Debido a que las bacterias se organizan en biofilms en la cavidad oral, el objetivo de este estudio es evaluar la actividad antibacteriana y el potencial anti-adhesión para la formación de biofilms del extracto de arándano rojo frente a Streptococcus oralis, Veillonela parvula, Actinomices naeslundii y los patógenos periodontales Porphyromonas gingivalis, Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans y Fusobacterium nucleatum, en un modelo validado de biofilm in vitro. Materiales y métodos Se estudiaron las concentraciones mínimas inhibitorias (MICs, por sus siglas en inglés) y las concentraciones mínimas bactericidas (MBCs, por sus siglas en inglés) de 6 especies bacterianas en planctónico, tras un periodo de exposición de 24-48 horas a diferentes concentraciones de extractos de arándano rojo (1.000 μg/mL; 500 μg/mL; 250 μg/mL; 100 μg/mL y 10 μg/mL). Dichas especies bacterianas están implicadas en el desarrollo del biofilm oral subgingival in vivo y, como tal, representan los colonizadores iniciales (S. oralis y A. naeslundii), tempranos (V. parvula), secundarios (F. nucleatum) y los colonizadores tardíos (P. gingivalis y A. actinomycetemcomitans). Teniendo en cuenta las MBCs de las seis especies bacterianas, se utilizó un modelo validado de biofilm in vitro, para evaluar la actividad antibacteriana de una solución de extractos de arándano rojo (20.000 μg/mL), frente a las bacterias organizadas en biofilm, en dos tiempos de exposición (30 y 60 segundos). Teniendo en cuenta las MICs de las seis especies bacterianas, se analizó el potencial inhibitorio en la formación de biofilms sobre discos de XVIII hidroxiapatita (HA), de una solución de extractos de arándano rojo (200 μg/mL), tras 6 horas de contacto. En los tres experimentos, se estudió el recuento de las bacterias, expresadas como unidades formadoras de colonias por mililitro (UFC/mL), mediante la técnica reacción en cadena de la polimerasa cuantitativa en tiempo real (qPCR, por sus siglas en inglés). La vitalidad celular de los biofilms fue evaluada por microscopía de barrido laser confocal (CLSM, por sus siglas en inglés). En el segundo y tercer experimentos, las variables dependientes seleccionadas fueron las UFC/mL viables de las seis bacterianas y la proporción de células vivas/células muertas de todo el biofilm. Se realizó un análisis a nivel del experimento para cada parámetro del estudio (n=9 para qPCR y n=3 para los resultados de CLSM). Para evaluar la normalidad de la distribución de los dados se usó el test de Shapiro-Wilk. El efecto de cada solución y el tiempo de exposición (variables independientes) y su interacción con las variables dependientes, se evaluó mediante el test paramétrico ANOVA. Se construyó un modelo lineal general, utilizándose el método de máxima verosimilitud y las correcciones de Bonferroni para comparaciones múltiples. Los datos se expresaron como medias ± desviación estándar y como el porcentaje medio de inhibición. Los resultados se consideraron estadísticamente significativos con p<0,05. Resultados Con respecto a la capacidad antibacteriana, los extractos de arándano rojo (20.000 µg/mL) provocaron reducciones estadísticamente significativas en las UFC/mL viables de S. oralis y A. naeslundii, en el modelo de biofilm in vitro, tras 30 y 60 segundos de exposición y frente a V. parvula, a los 30 segundos de exposición. Sin embargo, aunque su efecto redujo la viabilidad de P. gingivalis, A. actinomycetemcomitans y F. nucleatum, el efecto no fue estadísticamente significativo tras 30 y 60 segundos de exposición. Solo en el caso de F. nucleatum se observaron diferencias estadísticamente significativas en las UFC/mL viables, cuando se compararon los dos tiempos de exposición. XIX En relación a la capacidad antibiofilm, los extractos de arándano rojo (200 µg/mL) inhibieron significativamente la incorporación de las seis especies bacterianas en el modelo de biofilm in vitro, tras 6 horas de exposición, en comparación con los biofilms control (exposición a PBS). Tras el análisis de CLSM, se confirmó que los biofilms formados en la superficie de los discos de HA no estaban tan bien estructurados como los biofilms control, detectándose también reducciones significativas en la biomasa y en el numero de colonias bacterianas en los biofilms tratados mediante qPCR. Conclusiones El extracto natural de arándano rojo presenta capacidad antibacteriana frente a seis especies bacterianas (S. oralis, V. parvula, A. naeslundii y los patógenos periodontales P. gingivalis, A. actinomycetemcomitans y F. nucleatum) organizadas en biofilm, de manera significativa frente a los colonizadores iniciales, y capacidad para inhibir la incorporación de las seis especies bacterianas en un biofilm in vitro

El periodismo ante el conflicto entre la libertad de expresión y el secreto de estado (el caso portugués)

El presente trabajo comienza con un análisis de la evolución de los servicios de inteligencia como garantes de la seguridad interna y externa del Estado, realizado a través de un estudio de derecho comparado sobre cómo se regulan estos servicios en distintos países. A continuación se aborda el concepto de derecho a la información y su función trascendental en el proceso de comunicación pública. Seguidamente se opone a este derecho la noción de secreto oficial garantizado por los servicios de inteligencia y se plantea la posible necesidad de limitar el acceso a esta información confidencial en determinados supuestos para salvaguardar la seguridad nacional

FC Portugal 3D Simulation Team: Team Description Paper 2020

The FC Portugal 3D team is developed upon the structure of our previous Simulation league 2D/3D teams and our standard platform league team. Our research concerning the robot low-level skills is focused on developing behaviors that may be applied on real robots with minimal adaptation using model-based approaches. Our research on high-level soccer coordination methodologies and team playing is mainly focused on the adaptation of previously developed methodologies from our 2D soccer teams to the 3D humanoid environment and on creating new coordination methodologies based on the previously developed ones. The research-oriented development of our team has been pushing it to be one of the most competitive over the years (World champion in 2000 and Coach Champion in 2002, European champion in 2000 and 2001, Coach 2nd place in 2003 and 2004, European champion in Rescue Simulation and Simulation 3D in 2006, World Champion in Simulation 3D in Bremen 2006 and European champion in 2007, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015). This paper describes some of the main innovations of our 3D simulation league team during the last years. A new generic framework for reinforcement learning tasks has also been developed. The current research is focused on improving the above-mentioned framework by developing new learning algorithms to optimize low-level skills, such as running and sprinting. We are also trying to increase student contact by providing reinforcement learning assignments to be completed using our new framework, which exposes a simple interface without sharing low-level implementation details

Point-cloud based 3D object detection and classification methods for self-driving applications: A survey and taxonomy

Autonomous vehicles are becoming central for the future of mobility, supported by advances in deep learning techniques. The performance of aself-driving system is highly dependent on the quality of the perception task. Developments in sensor technologies have led to an increased availability of 3D scanners such as LiDAR, allowing for a more accurate representation of the vehicle's surroundings, leading to safer systems. The rapid development and consequent rise of research studies around self-driving systems since early 2010, resulted in a tremendous increase in the number and novelty of object detection methods. After the first wave of works that essentially tried to expand known techniques from object detection in images, more recently there has been a notable development in newer and more adapted to LiDAR data works. This paper addresses the existing literature on object detection using LiDAR data within the scope of self-driving and brings a systematic way for analysing it. Unlike general object detection surveys, we will focus on point-cloud data, which presents specific challenges, notably its high-dimensional and sparse nature. This work introduces a common object detection pipeline and taxonomy to facilitate a thorough comparison between different techniques and, departing from it, this work will critically examine the representation of data (critical for complexity reduction), feature extraction and finally the object detection models. A comparison between performance results of the different models is included, alongside with some future research challenges.This work is supported by European Structural and Investment Funds in the FEDER component, through the Operational Competitiveness and Internationalization Programme (COMPETE 2020) [Project n. 037902; Funding Reference: POCI-01-0247-FEDER-037902]

Low-temperature impedance spectroscopic analyses of ceramic electrodes based on Mo and Co co-doped SnO2

Low resistive electrodes based on Co and Mo co-doped SnO2 were prepared by the conventional solid-state reaction and sintered at 1250 °C for 2 h. Concentration of Co2O3 precursor was unchanged (1 mol%), while MoO3 was varied (0.25, 0.50 to 0.75 mol%) to promote conductivity. The structural and microstructural characterization revealed that the samples have a rutile-type structure without secondary phases and large rutile grains with low porosity. Electrical measurements on DC mode have shown a semiconductor behaviour of the SnO2 samples doped with 0.25 and 0.75 at. % of Mo at temperatures below 50 K, indicating their suitability for low-temperature electronic applications. Impedance measurements indicate reduced energy barriers of less than 1 meV formed between highly conductive crystallites for the SnO2 samples doped with 0.25 and 0.75 at. % of Mo. The sample with Mo content of 0.50 at. % presented a higher energy barrier at a few hundredths of eV, with space charges at the crystallite boundaries.Fil: Ferreira, Diego. Universidade Federal de Itajubá; BrasilFil: Vaz, Isabela. Universidade Federal de Itajubá; BrasilFil: Rubinger, Rero. Universidade Federal de Itajubá; BrasilFil: Buono, Camila. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencia y Tecnología de Materiales. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ingeniería. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencia y Tecnología de Materiales; ArgentinaFil: Rocha, Leandro. Universidade Federal do São Carlos; BrasilFil: Ponce, Miguel Adolfo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencia y Tecnología de Materiales. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ingeniería. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencia y Tecnología de Materiales; ArgentinaFil: Longo, Elson. Universidade Federal do São Carlos; BrasilFil: Simoes, Wilma Alexandre. Universidade Estadual Paulista Julio de Mesquita Filho; BrasilFil: Moura, Francisco. Universidade Federal de Itajubá; Brasi