Wide baseline image registration with application to 3-D face modeling

Establishing correspondence between features in two images of the same scene taken from different viewing angles is a challenging problem in image processing and computer vision. However, its solution is an important step in many applications like wide baseline stereo, three-dimensional (3-D) model alignment, creation of panoramic views, etc. In this paper, we propose a technique for registration of two images of a face obtained from different viewing angles. We show that prior information about the general characteristics of a face obtained from video sequences of different faces can be used to design a robust correspondence algorithm. The method works by matching two-dimensional (2-D) shapes of the different features of the face (e.g., eyes, nose etc.). A doubly stochastic matrix, representing the probability of match between the features, is derived using the Sinkhorn normalization procedure. The final correspondence is obtained by minimizing the probability of error of a match between the entire constellation of features in the two sets, thus taking into account the global spatial configuration of the features. The method is applied for creating holistic 3-D models of a face from partial representations. Although this paper focuses primarily on faces, the algorithm can also be used for other objects with small modifications.     

Searching for momentum enhancement in hypervelocity impacts

In conjunction with the Los Alamos National Laboratory hypervelocity microparticle impact (HMI) team effort to produce higher impact velocities and to understand the physics of crater formation and momentum transfer, we have implemented a low noise microphone as a momentum detector on both the 6 MV Van de Graaff and 85 KV “test stand” particle accelerators. Calculations are presented showing that the impulse response of a circular membrane. When used as a momentum impulse detector, the microphone theoretically may detect impulses as small as 8.8 × 10⁻¹⁵ N s. Sensitivity of the microphone in this application is limited by the noise threshold of the electronic amplifiers and the ambient microphonic vibration of the system. Calculations lead us to anticipate detection of particles over the full range of the Van de Graaff acceleration capability and up to 7 km/s on the test stand. We present momentum enhancement data in the velocity range between 10 km/s and 20 km/s. Preliminary work is presented on momentum impulse calibration of the microphone using laser-pulse photon momentum as an impulse source.     

Clarification of linear low‐density polyethylene using Bis‐oxalamide compounds

The clarifying effect of using bis‐oxalamide compounds on linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) has been investigated for the first time. It was demonstrated that the haze of a commercial LLDPE resin, DOWLEX? 2045G, can be reduced up to 50% by adding 0.2 wt % of a bis‐oxalamide clarifying agent. The investigations on the crystalline morphology revealed that the density of spherulite cores increased with increasing concentration of bis‐oxalamide N5. Through an investigation of structure‐property relationships based on the tunable bis‐oxalamide structure, it was demonstrated that the combination of linear alkyl core and cyclohexyl pendant groups showed the best clarification. The interactions of clarifying molecules were simulated using dynamic molecular simulation. The simulation suggested that the rigidity of the core functionality played a role on the hydrogen bonding in the intermolecular network, which may contribute to the macroscopic clarification performance. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 58:142–149, 2018. © 2017 Society of Plastics Engineers     

Stimulation of Sertoli cell proliferation: defining the response interval to an inhibitor of estrogen synthesis in the boar

Sertoli cell proliferation occurs in two major waves after birth, one neonatally and another prepubertally, each contributing to final testicular size and sperm production. However, little is known about the regulation of either wave. We have previously shown that letrozole, an inhibitor of estrogen synthesis, increases Sertoli cell number and testicular size at sexual maturity in boars. These studies were conducted to determine whether letrozole affects the first or second proliferative wave. Boars were treated with letrozole during the first wave (treatment at 1, 3, and 5 weeks), less frequently (1 week of age only, or 1 and 5 weeks), on postnatal day 1, or during the second wave (weeks 11-16). Sertoli cells were enumerated in testes and estrogen concentrations were evaluated in serum and testes. Compared with vehicle controls, letrozole reduced estrogen in boars treated at weeks 1 and 5 or 1, 3, and 5, on postnatal day 1, or prepubertally. However, Sertoli cell numbers were increased only in boars treated at 1, 3, and 5 weeks of age. Neither perinatal (1 day old) nor prepubertal letrozole treatment affected Sertoli cell numbers. Hence, Sertoli cell proliferation was sensitive to letrozole only if letrozole was administered throughout the first wave, even though estrogen synthesis was effectively inhibited at all ages. These data indicate that the neonatal but not the prepubertal window of Sertoli cell proliferation is sensitive to an inhibitor of estrogen synthesis; this suggests that these two waves are differently regulated.     

Data acquisition system for a hypervelocity-microparticle-impacts laboratory

A Hypervelocity Microparticle Impacts (HMI) laboratory has been established at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) capable of producing high velocity (1 to 100 km/s) highly charged (0.5 to 10 GV/m surface electric field) microparticles (20 to 1000 nm dia). The particles are charged in a “cosmic dust” source and accelerated in either an 80 kV test stand or the 6 MV Van de Graaff facility. A capacitive pick-off particle detection system is used to measure the charge and velocity of individual particles which can be selected to hit the target or deflected away using real-time analog decision circuitry. A NIM/CAMAC/PC based data acquisition system analyzes and displays individual particle events at rates up to 30 events/second. The system setup is data driven from user editable text files so that users can easily reconfigure the system for different types and numbers of data channels or different analysis calculations.     

Engineering geological models: an introduction: IAEG commission 25

The generation and use of engineering geological models should be a fundamental activity for any geotechnical project. Such models are an essential tool for engineering quality control and provide a transparent way of identifying project-specific critical engineering geological issues and parameters. Models should also form the basis for designing the scope, the method and assessing the effectiveness of site investigations. However, whilst the idea of models in engineering geology has existed for several decades, there has been little published that systematically distinguishes the different model types and how and when they might be used. This paper presents the views of the International Association for Engineering Geology and the Environment Commission C25 on the ‘Use of Engineering Geological Models’.     

A hypervelocity - microparticle - impacts laboratory with 100-km/s projectiles

A hypervelocity-microparticle-impacts (HMI) laboratory has been developed at the Ion Beam Facility (IBF) of the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) using a 6-MV Van de Graaff accelerator. The purpose of the laboratory is to characterize physical phenomena associated with hypervelocity impacts. Submicrometer-sized particles with velocities ranging from less than 1 km/s to greater than 100 km/s have been produced and detected. The technology development program is emphasized, and the results of a few preliminary experiments such as impact cratering and the determination of conducting-polymer size distributions are reported.     

Process dissociation, single-process theories, and recognition memory.

According to the assumptions of L. L. Jacoby's (1991) process dissociation method, performance in recognition memory is determined by the combination of an unconscious familiarity process and a conscious intentional recollection process. The process dissociation method is used to produce estimates of the contributions of the 2 components to recognition performance. This article investigates whether the method provides the correct estimates of components if performance actually depends on only a single process or on 2 processes different from those assumed by the method. The SAM model (G. Gillund and R. M. Shiffrin, 1984) was used to produce simulated data based on a single process. Variants of SAM with 2 processes and R. C. Atkinson and J. F. Juola's (1973) 2-process model were used to produce data based on 2 processes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A Philosophy for Dyeing in the Next Decade

Presented at the 13th Congress of the International Federation of Associations of Textile Chemists and Colourists in London on 20 September 1984.     

Mixture Experiment Techniques for Reducing the Number of Components Applied for Modeling Waste Glass Sodium Release

Statistical mixture experiment techniques were applied to a waste glass data set to investigate the effects of the glass components on Product Consistency Test (PCT) sodium release (NR) and to develop a model for PCT NR as a function of the component proportions. The mixture experiment techniques indicate that the waste glass system can be reduced from nine to four components for purposes of modeling PCT NR. Empirical mixture models containing four first-order terms and one or two second-order terms fit the data quite well, and can be used to predict the NR of any glass composition in the model domain. The mixture experiment techniques produce a better model in less time than required by another approach.