An evaluation of Guided Regularized Random Forest for classification and regression tasks in remote sensing

New Earth observation missions and technologies are delivering large amounts of data. Processing this data requires developing and evaluating novel dimensionality reduction approaches to identify the most informative features for classification and regression tasks. Here we present an exhaustive evaluation of Guided Regularized Random Forest (GRRF), a feature selection method based on Random Forest. GRRF does not require fixing a priori the number of features to be selected or setting a threshold of the feature importance. Moreover, the use of regularization ensures that features selected by GRRF are non-redundant and representative. Our experiments based on various kinds of remote sensing images, show that GRRF selected features provides similar results to those obtained when using all the available features. However, the comparison between GRRF and standard random forest features shows substantial differences: in classification, the mean overall accuracy increases by almost 6% and, in regression, the decrease in RMSE almost reaches 2%. These results demonstrate the potential of GRRF for remote sensing image classification and regression. Especially in the context of increasingly large geodatabases that challenge the application of traditional methods.     

波段选择协同表达高光谱异常探测算法

高光谱遥感影像具有光谱分辨率极高的特点,承载了大量可区分不同类型地物的诊断性光谱信息以及区分亚类相似地物之间细微差别的光谱信息,在目标探测领域具有独特的优势。与此同时,高光谱遥感影像也带来了数据维数高、邻近波段之间存在大量冗余信息的问题,高维度的数据结构往往使得高光谱影像异常目标类和背景类之间的可分性降低。为了缓解上述问题,本文提出了一种基于波段选择的协同表达高光谱异常探测算法。首先,使用最优聚类框架对高光谱波段进行选择,获得一组波段子集来表示原有的全部波段,使得高光谱影像异常目标类与背景类之间的可分性增强。然后使用协同表达对影像上的像元进行重建,由于异常目标类和背景类之间的可分性增强,对异常目标像元进行协同表达时将会得到更大的残差,异常目标像元的输出值增大,可以更好地实现异常目标和背景类的分离。本文使用了3组高光谱影像数据进行异常目标探测实验,实验结果表明,该方法与其他现有高光谱异常目标探测算法对比,曲线下面积AUC(Area Under Curve)值更高,可以更好地实现异常目标与背景分离,能够更有效地对高光谱影像进行异常目标探测。     

The FAST/SKA site selection in Guizhou province

Many karst depressions with diameters of 300 m to 500 m, suitable for constructing Arecibo-style radio telescopes, were identified in the south of Guizhou Province by Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographic Information System (GIS) technologies together with field investigations. Fundamental topography and landform databases were established for 391candidate depressions, and using GIS the3-dimensional images of depressions, at a scale of 1:10000, were then simulated to fit a spherical antenna. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

冰雹云雷达回波自动识别系统

利用CAPPI资料对立体风暴进行识别，计算并提供出实用的风暴结构参数，采用矩心踊跃法和矩不变量法相结合对单体风暴和混合性风暴回波进行跟踪；最小二第线性外推预报；根据WSD－88D的冰雹算法，在风暴结构基础上本文建立了Windows98操作平台上冰雹识别系统，经单站1年11次强对流天气过程的资料检验，结果表明：雹云识别精度达82％。系统建立了大量人机对话框以方便用户，增加实用性及推广性。     

一种基于Ohta-Okamoto签名的门限群签名方案

在修改的Ohta_Okamoto数字签名方案基础上,设计出了一个新的(t,n)门限签名方案。该方案具有可验证性和防止内部成员合谋攻击;而且验证者在验证群签名的有效性计算的复杂性与一般个人签名方案一样。该方案的安全性是基于大整数的因式分解,因此在计算上是安全的。     

A stepwise method for determining the number of component distributions in a mixture

This paper considers the problem of estimatingm, the number of components in a finite mixture of distributions from a parametric family. A step-up procedure using the bootstrap method is proposed. Some properties of the procedure are illustrated with simulation studies. An example of the method, applied to orientation of beach clasts, is given.     

Screening and ranking framework for geologic CO<Subscript>2</Subscript> storage site selection on the basis of health,safety, and environmental risk

A screening and ranking framework (SRF) has been developed to evaluate potential geologic carbon dioxide (CO₂) storage sites on the basis of health, safety, and environmental (HSE) risk arising from CO₂ leakage. The approach is based on the assumption that CO₂ leakage risk is dependent on three basic characteristics of a geologic CO₂ storage site: (1) the potential for primary containment by the target formation; (2) the potential for secondary containment if the primary formation leaks; and (3) the potential for attenuation and dispersion of leaking CO₂ if the primary formation leaks and secondary containment fails. The framework is implemented in a spreadsheet in which users enter numerical scores representing expert opinions or published information along with estimates of uncertainty. Applications to three sites in California demonstrate the approach. Refinements and extensions are possible through the use of more detailed data or model results in place of property proxies.     

Influence of Structural Non-Stationarity of Surface Roughness on Morphological Characterization and Mechanical Deformation of Rock Joints

Summary Structural non-stationarity of surface roughness affects accurate morphological characterization as well as mechanical behaviour of rock joints at the laboratory scale using samples with a size below the stationarity threshold. In this paper, the effect of structural non-stationarity of surface roughness is investigated by studying the scale dependence of surface roughness and mechanical behaviour of rock joints. The results show that the structural non-stationarity mainly affects the accurate characterization of the surface roughness of the fracture samples. It also controls the amount and location of the contact areas during shear tests, which in turn affects the mechanical properties and asperity degradation of the samples. It is concluded that for accurate determination of the morphological and mechanical properties of rock joints at laboratory and field scales, samples with size equal to or larger than the stationarity threshold are required. Author’s address: Nader Fardin, Rock Mechanics Group, Department of Mining Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Tehran, P.O. Box: 11365/4563, Tehran, Iran     

Oceanographic influences on seabirds and cetaceans of the eastern tropical Pacific: A review

This paper is part of a comprehensive review of the oceanography of the eastern tropical Pacific, the oceanic region centered on the eastern Pacific warm pool, but also including the equatorial cold tongue and equatorial current system, and summarizes what is known about oceanographic influences on seabirds and cetaceans there. The eastern tropical Pacific supports on the order of 50 species of seabirds and 30 species of cetaceans as regular residents; these include four endemic species, the world’s largest populations for several others, three endemic sub-species, and a multi-species community that is relatively unique to this ecosystem. Three of the meso-scale physical features of the region are particularly significant to seabirds and cetaceans: the Costa Rica Dome for blue whales and short-beaked common dolphins, the Equatorial Front for planktivorous seabirds, and the countercurrent thermocline ridge for flocking seabirds that associate with mixed-species schools of spotted and spinner dolphins and yellowfin tuna. A few qualitative studies of meso- to macro-scale distribution patterns have indicated that some seabirds and cetaceans have species-specific preferences for surface currents. More common are associations with distinct water masses; these relationships have been quantified for a number of species using several different analytical methods. The mechanisms underlying tropical species–habitat relationships are not well understood, in contrast to a number of higher-latitude systems. This may be due to the fact that physical variables have been used as proxies for prey abundance and distribution in species–habitat research in the eastern tropical Pacific.Though seasonal and interannual patterns tend to be complex, species–habitat relationships appear to remain relatively stable over time, and distribution patterns co-vary with patterns of preferred habitat for a number of species. The interactions between seasonal and interannual variation in oceanographic conditions with seasonal patterns in the biology of seabirds and cetaceans may account for some of the complexity in species–habitat relationship patterns.Little work has been done to investigate effects of El Niño-Southern Oscillation cycles on cetaceans, and results of the few studies focusing on oceanic seabirds are complex and not easy to interpret. Although much has been made of the detrimental effects of El Niño events on apex predators, more research is needed to understand the magnitude, and even direction, of these effects on seabirds and cetaceans in space and time.     

Genetic Diversity in Marine Molluscs: A Test of the Niche-Width Variation Hypothesis

Abstract. A test of the niche width variation hypothesis was conducted in the three Mediterranean littoral species of the family Trochidae: Monodonta turbinata, M. turbiformis and Gibbula richardi. Allozymic variation encoded by 26 gene loci was analyzed, and the levels of polymorphism (P), heterozygosity (H) and allele diversity per locus (A) were estimated and appear to support the niche-width variation hypothesis. The broad-niche species, M. turbiformis and G. richardi are more polymorphic and heterozygous than the relatively narrow-niche M. turbinata (P = 0.571; 0.731 and 0.417; H = 0.108; 0.116 and 0.078; A = 2.025; 2.489 and 1.965, respectively).