Mutual information maximizing GAN inversion for real face with identity preservation

Recent generative adversarial networks (GANs) have yielded remarkable performance in face image synthesis. GAN inversion embeds an image into the latent space of a pretrained generator, enabling it to be used for real face manipulation. However, current inversion approaches for real faces suffer the dilemma of initialization collapse and identity loss. In this paper, we propose a hierarchical GAN inversion for real faces with identity preservation based on mutual information maximization. We first use a facial domain guaranteed initialization to avoid the initialization collapse. Furthermore, we prove that maximizing the mutual information between inverted faces and their identities is equivalent to minimizing the distance between identity features from inverted and original faces. Optimization for real face inversion with identity preservation is implemented on this mutual information-maximizing constraint. Extensive experimental results show that our approach outperforms state-of-the-art solutions for inverting and editing real faces, particularly in terms of face identity preservation.     

Cybersecurity through the lens of Digital Identity and Data Protection: Issues and Trends

The use of a secure and robust digital identification system that is capable of protecting privacy is an essential, reliable and user-friendly element for a strong cyber resilience strategy and is a source of new business opportunities and applications for banks, private sector with a return on their investment.The march towards Digital Identity is well underway therefore, focus should be on both adoption and adaption of the new structures and regulations. These are needed to govern the associated services and transactions as well as establishing laws that enforce penalties for violations.There is no doubt then that more and more entities and institutions would move to the cloud. Security challenges affecting the cloud may not be new but the mode of addressing them would be different. The authors develop a Data Colouring technique for securing data processed or stored on both cloud and non-cloud platforms. The technique combines Public Key Infrastructure (PKI), concatenated fingerprints and digital watermarking. Using this technique, data can be secured at creation or during storage and remains secure during processing.     

Validation and application of a German version of the Dietarian Identity Questionnaire: Revealing differences between omnivores,vegetarians, and vegans

The Dietarian Identity Questionnaire (DIQ; Rosenfeld & Burrow, 2018) assesses how an individual thinks, feels, and behaves regarding the consumption or eschewal of animal products. This instrument offers a useful method for understanding how omnivores, vegetarians, and vegans alike construct their eating behaviours. In the current study (N = 961), we validated a German translation of the DIQ – the DIQ-D – and compared the dietarian identity profiles of omnivores, vegetarians, and vegans. Confirmatory factor analyses replicated the factor structure reported for the DIQ in English-speaking samples. Compared to omnivores, vegetarians considered their diet to be more central to their overall sense of identity, felt stronger motivations to follow their diet, adhered to their diet more strictly, evaluated their dietary in-group more favourably, evaluated their dietary out-group more negatively, and felt as though their dietary in-group was judged more negatively by others. For all of these effects, vegans reported more extreme scores than did vegetarians. Exploratory analyses of more nuanced dietary subgroups revealed differences in dietarian identity profiles between vegans who consume honey versus vegans who eschew honey and between pescetarians who self-identify as vegetarians versus pescetarians who do not. Our findings suggest that the DIQ-D offers a valuable method for identifying psychological correlates of people’s dietary relationships with animal products.     

Colourful questions of an Indian village

How we understand and recall colour in the environments we encounter is reliant on the context. Drawing on a repeated experience of the author in a rural Indian village, a number of questions were raised regarding visual distinctiveness and its impact on the identity of place embedded in the memories of the village. A photographic walk‐through was undertaken to determine the existing colour palette and its relationship to the character of the memories of the village. Combined with observations and theory drawn from the literature, it is proposed that considering the experience from a pluralist perspective enables insights to emerge. In this case, colour moments and colour contrast are key attributes of memories and identity construction for the village visitor.     

当代影视作品中中国传统服饰文化的身份建构

服饰文化元素是影视作品的重要构成部分,在文化身份建构和文化传播中具有重要的价值。文章基于影像叙事、传承与创新、全球语境下传统服饰文化的发展等动态的、多维的视域,全面观照当代影视传统服饰文化的身份建构路径,并探讨传统服饰文化资源在影视生产中合理转化的途径。     

Modified supercritical CO2 extraction of amine template from hexagonal mesoporous silica (HMS) materials: Effects of template identity and matrix Al/Si molar ratio

In this work, the primary amine template has been extracted from freshly synthesized hexagonal mesoporous silica (HMS) materials by means of modified supercritical carbon dioxide at 60–85 °C under 10.0–20.0 MPa. The influences of amine identity and matrix Al/Si ratio on the extraction efficiencies and structural properties of HMS thus obtained are investigated in detail. The results show that the extraction efficiency is strongly dependent on the pore size of the HMS materials produced by five different templates. For aluminium-incorporated samples, the extraction efficiency is observed to decrease with the Al/Si molar ratio since as the Al/Si molar ratio increases, more amine will get protonated and the matrix/template interactions become stronger, subsequently rendering the extraction more difficult and the efficiency decrease. The formic acid modifier has resulted in better extraction performance than methanol, yielding higher extraction efficiencies. The SFE-treated materials exhibit better structural properties like higher pore volume and specific surface area as compared to those prepared by conventional calcinations. Besides, results of pyridine adsorption and conversion of 2-propanol to propylene suggest that the SFE-treated HMS materials may have higher acidity than the directly calcined samples.     

Alteration of Skin Properties with Autologous Dermal Fibroblasts

Dermal fibroblasts are mesenchymal cells found between the skin epidermis and subcutaneous tissue. They are primarily responsible for synthesizing collagen and glycosaminoglycans; components of extracellular matrix supporting the structural integrity of the skin. Dermal fibroblasts play a pivotal role in cutaneous wound healing and skin repair. Preclinical studies suggest wider applications of dermal fibroblasts ranging from skin based indications to non-skin tissue regeneration in tendon repair. One clinical application for autologous dermal fibroblasts has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) while others are in preclinical development or various stages of regulatory approval. In this context, we outline the role of fibroblasts in wound healing and discuss recent advances and the current development pipeline for cellular therapies using autologous dermal fibroblasts. The microanatomic and phenotypic differences of fibroblasts occupying particular locations within the skin are reviewed, emphasizing the therapeutic relevance of attributes exhibited by subpopulations of fibroblasts. Special focus is provided to fibroblast characteristics that define regional differences in skin, including the thick and hairless skin of the palms and soles as compared to hair-bearing skin. This regional specificity and functional identity of fibroblasts provides another platform for developing regional skin applications such as the induction of hair follicles in bald scalp or alteration of the phenotype of stump skin in amputees to better support their prosthetic devices.     

瑞士与阿尔卑斯地区的传统与当代的木构建筑

本文从传统和地域的角度回顾了木构建筑在瑞士及阿尔卑斯地区的历史发展过程，并论述了其在生产技术方面的进步对设计过程和造型的影响。