Predicting the visualization intensity for interactive spatio-temporal visual analytics: a data-driven view-dependent approach

The continually increasing size of geospatial data sets poses a computational challenge when conducting interactive visual analytics using conventional desktop-based visualization tools. In recent decades, improvements in parallel visualization using state-of-the-art computing techniques have significantly enhanced our capacity to analyse massive geospatial data sets. However, only a few strategies have been developed to maximize the utilization of parallel computing resources to support interactive visualization. In particular, an efficient visualization intensity prediction component is lacking from most existing parallel visualization frameworks. In this study, we propose a data-driven view-dependent visualization intensity prediction method, which can dynamically predict the visualization intensity based on the distribution patterns of spatio-temporal data. The predicted results are used to schedule the allocation of visualization tasks. We integrated this strategy with a parallel visualization system deployed in a compute unified device architecture (CUDA)-enabled graphical processing units (GPUs) cloud. To evaluate the flexibility of this strategy, we performed experiments using dust storm data sets produced from a regional climate model. The results of the experiments showed that the proposed method yields stable and accurate prediction results with acceptable computational overheads under different types of interactive visualization operations. The results also showed that our strategy improves the overall visualization efficiency by incorporating intensity-based scheduling.     

Recovering magnetic susceptibility from electromagnetic data over a one-dimensional earth

While the inversion of electromagnetic data to recover electrical conductivity has received much attention, the inversion of those data to recover magnetic susceptibility has not been fully studied. In this paper we invert frequency-domain electromagnetic (EM) data from a horizontal coplanar system to recover a 1-D distribution of magnetic susceptibility under the assumption that the electrical conductivity is known. The inversion is carried out by dividing the earth into layers of constant susceptibility and minimizing an objective function of the susceptibility subject to fitting the data. An adjoint Green's function solution is used in the calculation of sensitivities, and it is apparent that the sensitivity problem is driven by three sources. One of the sources is the scaled electric field in the layer of interest, and the other two, related to effective magnetic charges, are located at the upper and lower boundaries of the layer. These charges give rise to a frequency-independent term in the sensitivities. Because different frequencies penetrate to different depths in the earth, the EM data contain inherent information about the depth distribution of susceptibility. This contrasts with static field measurements, which can be reproduced by a surface layer of magnetization. We illustrate the effectiveness of the inversion algorithm on synthetic and field data and show also the importance of knowing the background conductivity. In practical circumstances, where there is no a priori information about conductivity distribution, a simultaneous inversion of EM data to recover both electrical conductivity and susceptibility will be required.     

地球深部探测的先锋: 深地震反射方法的发展与应用

深地震反射剖面早已被国际上证实是一种地球深部探测的先锋技术,它利用比石油地震勘探更长的接收排列、更大的激发能量,探测上至地表,下达上地幔的精细结构和构造特征,现已被国内外越来越多地应用于大陆及海洋地壳与岩石圈上地幔探测上。深地震反射剖面技术在揭示地球深部动力学过程,论述大地构造演化,确定盆山耦合关系,推测成矿成藏条件,分析地震灾害等方面取得了丰硕成果。系统地梳理和概括了国内外陆地地区深地震反射剖面技术的研究现状以及典型应用案例。在此基础上,从深地震反射野外数据采集、数据资料处理、剖面地质解译以及多方法联合探测4个方面,对地震反射剖面技术未来发展方向进行了展望。研究认为：在野外采集方面,研发不同激发、接收组合类型的采集技术、提升深地震反射数据采集质量,减少环境破坏,降低经济成本;在数据处理中,继续探究提高深地震反射剖面的信噪比与分辨率,定量监控深地震反射数据处理过程中振幅保真度的相对变化;在资料解译时,将深入挖掘深地震反射剖面的叠前、叠后潜在信息,降低单纯依靠深地震反射振幅解译的非唯一性;在综合研究上,从多学科、多角度、多尺度、多方法上相互补充印证,降低剖面的多解性,提高成果的准确性和可靠度。

     

Analysis of spatial clustering optimization

Spatial clustering is widely used in many fields such as WSN (Wireless Sensor Networks), web clustering, remote sensing and so on for discovery groups and to identify interesting distributions in the underlying database. By discussing the relationships between the optimal clustering and the initial seeds, a clustering validity index and the principle of seeking initial seeds were proposed, and on this principle we recommend an initial seed-seeking strategy: SSPG (Single-Shortest-Path Graph). With SSPG strategy used in clustering algorithms, we find that the result of clustering is optimized with more probability. At the end of the paper, according to the combinational theory of optimization, a method is proposed to obtain optimal reference k value of cluster number, and is proven to be efficient.     

Bimodal distribution of area-weighted latitude of sunspots and solar North-South asymmetry

We study the latitudinal distribution of sunspots observed from 1874 to 2009 using the center-of-latitude (COL). We calculate COL by taking the area-weighted mean latitude of sunspots for each calendar month. We then form the latitudinal distribution of COL for the sunspots appearing in the northern and southern hemispheres separately, and in both hemispheres with unsigned and signed latitudes, respectively. We repeat the analysis with subsets which are divided based on the criterion of which hemisphere is dominant for a given solar cycle. Our primary findings are as follows: (1) COL is not monotonically decreasing with time in each cycle. Small humps can be seen (or short plateaus) around every solar maxima. (2) The distribution of COL resulting from each hemisphere is bimodal, which can well be represented by the double Gaussian function. (3) As far as the primary component of the double Gaussian function is concerned, for a given data subset, the distributions due to the sunspots appearing in two different hemispheres are alike. Regardless of which hemisphere is magnetically dominant, the primary component of the double Gaussian function seems relatively unchanged. (4) When the northern (southern) hemisphere is dominant the width of the secondary component of the double Gaussian function in the northern (southern) hemisphere case is about twice as wide as that in the southern (northern) hemisphere. (5) For the distribution of the COL averaged with signed latitude, whose distribution is basically described by a single Gaussian function, it is shifted to the positive (negative) side when the northern (southern) hemisphere is dominant. Finally, we conclude by briefly discussing the implications of these findings on the variations in the solar activity.     

Head/Tail Breaks: A New Classification Scheme for Data with a Heavy-Tailed Distribution

This article introduces a new classification scheme—head/tail breaks—to find groupings or hierarchy for data with a heavy-tailed distribution. The heavy-tailed distributions are heavily right skewed, with a minority of large values in the head and a majority of small values in the tail, commonly characterized by a power law, a lognormal, or an exponential function. For example, a country's population is often distributed in such a heavy-tailed manner, with a minority of people (e.g., 20 percent) in the countryside and the vast majority (e.g., 80 percent) in urban areas. This new classification scheme partitions all of the data values around the mean into two parts and continues the process iteratively for the values (above the mean) in the head until the head part values are no longer heavy-tailed distributed. Thus, the number of classes and the class intervals are both naturally determined. I therefore claim that the new classification scheme is more natural than the natural breaks in finding the groupings or hierarchy for data with a heavy-tailed distribution. I demonstrate the advantages of the head/tail breaks method over Jenks's natural breaks in capturing the underlying hierarchy of the data.     

Assimilating data into open ocean tidal models

The problem of deriving tidal fields from observations by reason of incompleteness and imperfectness of every data set practically available has an infinitely large number of allowable solutions fitting the data within measurement errors and hence can be treated as ill-posed. Therefore, interpolating the data always relies on some a priori assumptions concerning the tides, which provide a rule of sampling or, in other words, a regularization of the ill-posed problem. Data assimilation procedures used in large scale tide modeling are viewed in a common mathematical framework as such regularizations. It is shown that they all (basis functions expansion, parameter estimation, nudging, objective analysis, general inversion, and extended general inversion), including those (objective analysis and general inversion) originally formulated in stochastic terms, may be considered as utilizations of one of the three general methods suggested by the theory of ill-posed problems. The problem of grid refinement critical for inverse methods and nudging is discussed.     

矿井水化学数据管理与综合应用实例

为有效管理和利用矿井长期积累的大量水化学数据,介绍了基于Microsoft Excel的数据管理方法。该方法既方便水化学特点分析,也有利于质量标准化建设,设计的数据表可作为模板供生产单位防治水技术人员使用。通过应用实例说明了水化学数据在防治水工作中的重要性,同时,也证明传统简单分析方法仍是常用且有效的方法。     

中巴地球资源一号卫星CCD图像质量评价和交叉定标研究

使用定量分析方法评价了中巴地球资源卫星CCD相机遥感数据质量 ,在此基础上利用LANDSAT 7ETM 对CCD的对应波段进行交叉定标计算 ,得到了一组CCD的参考定标系数。在遥感数据质量评价研究中 ,使用统计分析方法计算得到了CCD相机图像数据的条纹强度 ;应用结构函数方法计算获得了CCD的噪声数据 ;通过功率谱计算 ,对比分析了CCD和LANDSAT 7ETM 对应波段图像空间纹理特征。该文通过交叉定标计算 ,得到了CCD相机前 4个波段的参考定标系数、动态范围和噪声等效反射率等参考指标 ,并对这组定标系数进行了验证 ,从验证结果中发现CCD1,2 ,3和LANDSAT 7ETM 对应波段反射率最大相差 1 98% ,最小0 0 3% ,平均差要低于 1 31% ,而波段 4最大也仅相差 4 4 1% ,平均差 3 0 2 % ,证明计算得到的交叉定标系数具有较高的参考价值     

MODIS 1B影像几何纠正方法研究及软件实现

MODIS影像是一种新型和重要的数据。对MODIS 1B影像几何畸变原因进行了深入分析，选择了一种合适的纠正方法。对于1km分辨率MODIS 1B影像，直接采用1km分辨率的空间坐标进行几何纠正；对于250m和500m分辨率的MODIS 1B影像，先用三次样条曲线对坐标进行插值生成同分辨率的坐标，然后利用坐标插值结果对其进行几何纠正。由于MODIS影像在空问分布上的特殊性，采用前向和后向映射相结合的方式确定纠正后某一像素点在原始影像中的位置。根据该位置的条带重叠度，可以确定参与计算像素个数、搜索窗口的大小以及窗口的精确位置；采用归一化反距离加权插值法计算纠正后像素点的属性值。上述优化算法不仅保证了纠正后影像的质量，而且提高了数据处理速度。作者在Visual C 6．0环境下开发实现了上述算法。从坐标插值和几何纠正结果分析，无论是数据处理速度还是纠正后的影像质量和精度均达到要求。