Shape discrimination using invariants defined from higher-order spectra

An approach to pattern recognition using invariant parameters based on higher-order spectra is presented. In particular, bispectral invariants are used to classify one-dimensional shapes. The bispectrum, which is translation invariant, is integrated along straight lines passing through the origin in bifrequency space. The phase of the integrated bispectrum is shown to be scale- and amplification-invariant. A minimal set of these invariants is selected as the feature vector for pattern classification. Pattern recognition using higher-order spectral invariants is fast, suited for parallel implementation, and works for signals corrupted by Gaussian noise. The classification technique is shown to distinguish two similar but different bolts given their one-dimensional profiles

A general procedure for the derivation of principal domains of higher-order spectra

A general procedure to determine the principal domain (i.e., nonredundant region of computation) of any higher-order spectrum is presented, using the bispectrum as an example. The procedure is then applied to derive the principal domain of the trispectrum of a real-valued, stationary time series. These results are easily extended to compute the principal domains of other higher-order spectra

Position, rotation, and scale invariant recognition of images using higher-order spectra

A new approach to recognition of images using invariant features based on higher-order spectra is presented. Higher-order spectra are translation invariant because translation produces linear phase shifts which cancel. Scale and amplification invariance are satisfied by the phase of the integral of a higher-order spectrum along a radial line in higher-order frequency space because the contour of integration maps onto itself and both the real and imaginary parts are affected equally by the transformation. Rotation invariance is introduced by deriving invariants from the Radon transform of the image and using the cyclic-shift invariance property of the discrete Fourier transform magnitude. Results on synthetic and actual images show isolated, compact clusters in feature space and high classification accuracies

Pattern recognition using invariants defined from higher order spectra - one-dimensional inputs

A new approach to pattern recognition using invariant parameters based on higher order spectra is presented. In particular, invariant parameters derived from the bispectrum are used to classify one-dimensional shapes. The bispectrum, which is translation invariant, is integrated along straight lines passing through the origin in bifrequency space. The phase of the integrated bispectrum is shown to be scale and amplification invariant, as well. A minimal set of these invariants is selected as the feature vector for pattern classification, and a minimum distance classifier using a statistical distance measure is used to classify test patterns. The classification technique is shown to distinguish two similar, but different bolts given their one-dimensional profiles. Pattern recognition using higher order spectral invariants is fast, suited for parallel implementation, and has high immunity to additive Gaussian noise. Simulation results show very high classification accuracy, even for low signal-to-noise ratios.

Neural interface systems : a new legal frontier?

In an age where digital innovation knows no boundaries, research in the area of brain-computer interface and other neural interface devices go where none have gone before. The possibilities are endless and as dreams become reality, the implications of these amazing developments should be considered. Some of these new devices have been created to correct or minimise the effects of disease or injury so the paper discusses some of the current research and development in the area, including neuroprosthetics. To assist researchers and academics in identifying some of the legal and ethical issues that might arise as a result of research and development of neural interface devices, using both non-invasive techniques and invasive procedures, the paper discusses a number of recent observations of authors in the field. The issue of enhancing human attributes by incorporating these new devices is also considered. Such enhancement may be regarded as freeing the mind from the constraints of the body, but there are legal and moral issues that researchers and academics would be well advised to contemplate as these new devices are developed and used. While different fact situation surround each of these new devices, and those that are yet to come, consideration of the legal and ethical landscape may assist researchers and academics in dealing effectively with matters that arise in these times of transition. Lawyers could seek to facilitate the resolution of the legal disputes that arise in this area of research and development within the existing judicial and legislative frameworks. Whether these frameworks will suffice, or will need to change in order to enable effective resolution, is a broader question to be explored.

Infrastructure charges and increases to new house prices : a preliminary analysis of the US empirical models

Sourcing appropriate funding for the provision of new urban infrastructure has been a policy dilemma for governments around the world for decades. This is particularly relevant in high growth areas where new services are required to support swelling populations. The Australian infrastructure funding policy dilemmas are reflective of similar matters in many countries, particularly the United States of America, where infrastructure cost recovery policies have been in place since the 1970’s. There is an extensive body of both theoretical and empirical literature from these countries that discusses the passing on (to home buyers) of these infrastructure charges, and the corresponding impact on housing prices. The theoretical evidence is consistent in its findings that infrastructure charges are passed on to home buyers by way of higher house prices. The empirical evidence is also consistent in its findings, with “overshifting” of these charges evident in all models since the 1980’s, i.e. $1 infrastructure charge results in greater than $1 increase in house prices. However, despite over a dozen separate studies over two decades in the US on this topic, no empirical works have been carried out in Australia to test if similar shifting or overshifting occurs here. The purpose of this research is to conduct a preliminary analysis of the more recent models used in these US empirical studies in order to identify the key study area selection criteria and success factors. The paper concludes that many of the study area selection criteria are implicit rather than explicit. By collecting data across the models, some implicit criteria become apparent, whilst others remain elusive. This data will inform future research on whether an existing model can be adopted or adapted for use in Australia.

US Federal Government entrepreneurship : new enterprise structures

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to guide the formation and to determine the structure of new governmental entrepreneurial ventures based on the nature of the public goods and the need for an entrepreneurial orientation. Design/methodology/research: This paper is conceptual and is based on reviews of appropriate organizational structure and entrepreneurship, cases studies, and the authors' experiences. Findings: Public or quasi-public entities may need to change their organizational structure in order to act more entrepreneurially and to be more effective in accomplishing their missions. Propositions are raised to guide the development of new public or private enterprises and provide the basis for future research. Research limitations/implications: This paper is conceptual and needs to be tested empirically. Though other levels of government and countries were included, a major focus is on the US federal government. Originality/value: This is the first published research on the topic of new enterprise government structures based on the nature of the goods and the requisite entrepreneurial orientation. It will help governmental and quasi-governmental organizations in developing efficient and effective organizational structures.

Book review : Frew, A.J., (Ed). Information and Communication Technologies in Tourism 2005. New York: Springer Wien

This volume represents the proceedings of the 12th ENTER conference held at Innsbruck in 2005. While the conference also accepts work-in-progress papers and includes a Ph.D. workshop, the proceedings contain 51 research papers by 102 authors. The general theme of the conference was eBusiness is here—what is next? and the papers cover a diverse range of topics across nine tracks. This reviewer has adopted the approach of succinctly summarising the contribution of each of the papers, in the order they appear....

China's new Creative Clusters : Governance, Human Capital and Investment

Recognising that creativity is a major driving force in the post-industrial economy, the Chinese government has recently established a range of "creative clusters" – industrial parks devoted to media industries, and arts districts – in order to promote the development of the creative industries. This book examines these new creative clusters, outlining their nature and purpose, and assessing their effectiveness. Drawing on case studies of a range of cluster models, and comparing them with international examples, the book demonstrates that creativity, both in China and internationally, is in fact a process of fitting new ideas to existing patterns, models and formats. It shows how large and exceptionally impressive creative clusters have been successfully established, but raises the important questions of whether profit or culture is the driving force, and of whether the bringing together of independent-minded, creative people, entrepreneurial businessmen, preferential policies and foreign investment may in time lead to unintended changes in social and political attitudes in China, including a weakening of state bureaucratic power. An important contribution to the existing literature on the subject, this book will be of great interest to scholars of urban studies, cultural geography, cultural economics and Asian studies.

Serious fears across cultures about the collapse of the world order

This chapter approaches resilience from an evolutionary psychology (socio-biological) perspective. It argues that the internal constitution and mental toughness of the individual will provide a core protection for life’s inevitable tests in the innumerable micro and macro environments humans find themselves. The many descriptors of the construct of resilience used in various studies are explored. Finally, the difference psychologists can make in the therapy of clients whose resilience is being tested, is examined by means of case examples.

Alternatives to youth imprisonment : evaluating the Victorian youth attendance order

On 22 June 1988 the then Minister for Community Services Victoria, Race Matthews, officially launched the Youth Attendance Order (YAO), a high tariff alternative for young offenders aged between 15 and 18 years who were facing a term of detention. Throughout the order's gestation, much debate occurred about the impact it would have on rates of juvenile incarceration as well as about the potential ‘net widening’ effect it could have on less serious offenders. In May 1994 the National Centre For Socio-Legal Studies at La Trobe University submitted its report evaluating the Victorian Youth Attendance Order. This article presents some of the major findings of that report and examines the future options for this high tariff order in juvenile justice

Putting paid to prescribed roles : a new era for Australian women and philanthropy

In redefining our understanding of women’s roles in contemporary Australian philanthropy, the impact of major contextual and demographic changes, as well as changes in women’s roles, responsibilities and opportunities need to be considered. Although academic study of philanthropy and the wider third sector is increasing in Australia, literature searches have revealed little current data on the giving patterns and philanthropic drivers for contemporary Australian women, particularly emerging cohorts (one ABS survey looks at giving patterns – ABS, 2000b: 32). In contrast, there is increasing interest in the US, where it is acknowledged that more women are becoming independent holders of wealth; and that interested donors have specific needs, desires and motivations in terms of knowledge, power, marketing and response to their philanthropy (see for example, Grace 2000; McCarthy 2001; Women’s Philanthropy Institute 2002). These varied demographic, social and economic drivers, which could also be expected to encourage new cohorts of Australian women to give, will be examined within our definition of women in philanthropy, and a brief history of women’s philanthropy in Australia, in order to inform future in-depth analyses of Australian women donors.

Power in legal education : a (new) critical and analytical approach

This article explores power within legal education scholarship. It suggests that power relations are not effectively reflected on within this scholarship, and it provokes legal educators to consider power more explicitly and effectively. It then outlines in-depth a conceptual and methodological approach based on Michel Foucault’s concept of ‘governmentality’ to assist in such an analysis. By detailing the conceptual moves required in order to research power in legal education more effectively, this article seeks to stimulate new reflection and thought about the practice and scholarship of legal education, and allow for political interventions to become more ethically sensitive and potentially more effective.

New strategies of managing waste in office building retrofit projects

Retrofit projects are different from newly-built projects in many respects. A retrofit project involves an existing building, which imposes constraints on the owners, designers, operators and constructors throughout the project process. Retrofit projects are risky, complex, less predictable and difficult to be well planned, which need greater coordination. For office building retrofit project, further restrictions will apply as these buildings often locate in CBD areas and most have to remain operational during the progression of project work. Issues such as site space, material storage and handling, noise and dust, need to be considered and well addressed. In this context, waste management is even more challenging with small spaces for waste handling, uncertainties in waste control, and impact of waste management activities on project delivery and building occupants. Current literatures on waste management in office building retrofit projects focus on increasing waste recovery rate based on project planning, monitoring and stakeholders’ collaboration. However, previous research has not produced knowledge of understanding the particular retrofit processes and their impact on waste generation and management. This paper discusses the interim results of a continuing research on new strategies for waste management in office building retrofit projects. Firstly based on the literature review, it summarizes the unique characteristics of office building retrofit projects and their influence on waste management. An assumption on waste management strategies is formed. Semi-structured interviews were conducted towards industry practitioners and findings are then presented in the paper. The assumption of the research was validated in the interviews from the opinions and experiences of the respondents. Finally the research develops a process model for waste management in office building retrofit projects. It introduces two different waste management strategies. For the dismantling phase, waste is generated fast along with the work progress, so integrated planning for project delivery and waste generation is needed in order to organize prompt handling and treatment. For the fit-out phase, the work is similar as new construction. Factors which are particularly linked to generating waste on site need to be controlled and monitored. Continuing research in this space will help improve the practice of waste management in office building retrofit projects. The new strategies will help promote the practicality of project waste planning and management and stakeholders’ capability of coordinating waste management and project delivery.

The evolutionary history of the extinct ratite moa and New Zealand Neogene paleogeography

The ratite moa (Aves: Dinornithiformes) were a speciose group of massive graviportal avian herbivores that dominated the New Zealand (NZ) ecosystem until their extinction �600 years ago. The phylogeny and evolutionary history of this morphologically diverse order has remained controversial since their initial description in 1839. We synthesize mitochondrial phylogenetic information from 263 subfossil moa specimens from across NZ with morphological, ecological, and new geological data to create the first comprehensive phylogeny, taxonomy, and evolutionary timeframe for all of the species of an extinct order. We also present an important new geological/paleogeographical model of late Cenozoic NZ, which suggests that terrestrial biota on the North and South Island landmasses were isolated for most of the past 20–30 Ma. The data reveal that the patterns of genetic diversity within and between differentmoaclades reflect a complex history following a major marine transgression in the Oligocene, affected by marine barriers, tectonic activity, and glacial cycles. Surprisingly, the remarkable morphological radiation of moa appears to have occurred much more recently than previous early Miocene (ca. 15 Ma) estimates, and was coincident with the accelerated uplift of the Southern Alps just ca. 5–8.5 Ma. Together with recent fossil evidence, these data suggest that the recent evolutionary history of nearly all of the iconic NZ terrestrial biota occurred principally on just the South Island.