Multi-modal ultrasound imaging for breast cancer detection

This work describes preliminary results of a two-modality imaging system aimed at the early detection of breast cancer. The first technique is based on compounding conventional echographic images taken at regular angular intervals around the imaged breast. The other modality obtains tomographic images of propagation velocity using the same circular geometry. For this study, a low-cost prototype has been built. It is based on a pair of opposed 128-element, 3.2 MHz array transducers that are mechanically moved around tissue mimicking phantoms. Compounded images around 360 degrees provide improved resolution, clutter reduction, artifact suppression and reinforce the visualization of internal structures. However, refraction at the skin interface must be corrected for an accurate image compounding process. This is achieved by estimation of the interface geometry followed by computing the internal ray paths. On the other hand, sound velocity tomographic images from time of flight projections have been also obtained. Two reconstruction methods, Filtered Back Projection (FBP) and 2D Ordered Subset Expectation Maximization (2D OSEM), were used as a first attempt towards tomographic reconstruction. These methods yield useable images in short computational times that can be considered as initial estimates in subsequent more complex methods of ultrasound image reconstruction. These images may be effective to differentiate malignant and benign masses and are very promising for breast cancer screening. (C) 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Paired structures in knowledge representation.

In this position paper we propose a consistent and unifying view to all those basic knowledge representation models that are based on the existence of two somehow opposite fuzzy concepts. A number of these basic models can be found in fuzzy logic and multi-valued logic literature. Here it is claimed that it is the semantic relationship between two paired concepts what determines the emergence of different types of neutrality, namely indeterminacy, ambivalence and conflict, widely used under different frameworks (possibly under different names). It will be shown the potential relevance of paired structures, generated from two paired concepts together with their associated neutrality, all of them to be modeled as fuzzy sets. In this way, paired structures can be viewed as a standard basic model from which different models arise. This unifying view should therefore allow a deeper analysis of the relationships between several existing knowledge representation formalisms, providing a basis from which more expressive models can be later developed.