A Comparative Study of Wavelet Based Feature Extraction Techniques in Recognizing Isolated Spoken Words

Speech is a natural mode of communication for people and speech recognition is an intensive area of research due to its versatile applications. This paper presents a comparative study of various feature extraction methods based on wavelets for recognizing isolated spoken words. Isolated words from Malayalam, one of the four major Dravidian languages of southern India are chosen for recognition. This work includes two speech recognition methods. First one is a hybrid approach with Discrete Wavelet Transforms and Artificial Neural Networks and the second method uses a combination of Wavelet Packet Decomposition and Artificial Neural Networks. Features are extracted by using Discrete Wavelet Transforms (DWT) and Wavelet Packet Decomposition (WPD). Training, testing and pattern recognition are performed using Artificial Neural Networks (ANN). The proposed method is implemented for 50 speakers uttering 20 isolated words each. The experimental results obtained show the efficiency of these techniques in recognizing speech

Development of Techniques for the Automatic Extraction and Grade Detection of Glioma Tumors from Conventional Brain Magnetic Resonant Images

Cerebral glioma is the most prevalent primary brain tumor, which are classified broadly into low and high grades according to the degree of malignancy. High grade gliomas are highly malignant which possess a poor prognosis, and the patients survive less than eighteen months after diagnosis. Low grade gliomas are slow growing, least malignant and has better response to therapy. To date, histological grading is used as the standard technique for diagnosis, treatment planning and survival prediction. The main objective of this thesis is to propose novel methods for automatic extraction of low and high grade glioma and other brain tissues, grade detection techniques for glioma using conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) modalities and 3D modelling of glioma from segmented tumor slices in order to assess the growth rate of tumors. Two new methods are developed for extracting tumor regions, of which the second method, named as Adaptive Gray level Algebraic set Segmentation Algorithm (AGASA) can also extract white matter and grey matter from T1 FLAIR an T2 weighted images. The methods were validated with manual Ground truth images, which showed promising results. The developed methods were compared with widely used Fuzzy c-means clustering technique and the robustness of the algorithm with respect to noise is also checked for different noise levels. Image texture can provide significant information on the (ab)normality of tissue, and this thesis expands this idea to tumour texture grading and detection. Based on the thresholds of discriminant first order and gray level cooccurrence matrix based second order statistical features three feature sets were formulated and a decision system was developed for grade detection of glioma from conventional T2 weighted MRI modality.The quantitative performance analysis using ROC curve showed 99.03% accuracy for distinguishing between advanced (aggressive) and early stage (non-aggressive) malignant glioma. The developed brain texture analysis techniques can improve the physician’s ability to detect and analyse pathologies leading to a more reliable diagnosis and treatment of disease. The segmented tumors were also used for volumetric modelling of tumors which can provide an idea of the growth rate of tumor; this can be used for assessing response to therapy and patient prognosis.

Potential application of β-1, 3 glucanase from an environmental isolate of Pseudomonas aeruginosa MCCB 123 in fungal DNA extraction

Pseudomonas aeruginosa MCCB 123 was grown in a synthetic medium for β-1,3 glucanase production. From the culture filtrate, β-1,3 glucanase was purified with a molecular mass of 45 kDa. The enzyme was a metallozyme as its β-1,3 glucanase activity got inhibited by the metal chelator EDTA. Optimum pH and temperature for β-1,3 glucanase activity on laminarin was found to be 7 and 50 °C respectively. The MCCB 123 β-1,3 glucanase was found to have good lytic action on a wide range of fungal isolates, and hence its application in fungal DNA extraction was evaluated. β-1,3 glucanase purified from the culture supernatant of P. aeruginosa MCCB 123 could be used for the extraction of fungal DNA without the addition of any other reagents generally used. Optimum pH and temperature of enzyme for fungal DNA extraction was found to be 7 and 65 °C respectively. This is the first report on β-1,3 glucanase employed in fungal DNA extraction

Ontology based Framework for News Extraction in Visual Media

Anticipating the increase in video information in future, archiving of news is an important activity in the visual media industry. When the volume of archives increases, it will be difficult for journalists to find the appropriate content using current search tools. This paper provides the details of the study we conducted about the news extraction systems used in different news channels in Kerala. Semantic web technologies can be used effectively since news archiving share many of the characteristics and problems of WWW. Since visual news archives of different media resources follow different metadata standards, interoperability between the resources is also an issue. World Wide Web Consortium has proposed a draft for an ontology framework for media resource which addresses the intercompatiblity issues. In this paper, the w3c proposed framework and its drawbacks is also discussed

Automatic Optic Disc Boundary Extraction from Color Fundus Images

Efficient optic disc segmentation is an important task in automated retinal screening. For the same reason optic disc detection is fundamental for medical references and is important for the retinal image analysis application. The most difficult problem of optic disc extraction is to locate the region of interest. Moreover it is a time consuming task. This paper tries to overcome this barrier by presenting an automated method for optic disc boundary extraction using Fuzzy C Means combined with thresholding. The discs determined by the new method agree relatively well with those determined by the experts. The present method has been validated on a data set of 110 colour fundus images from DRION database, and has obtained promising results. The performance of the system is evaluated using the difference in horizontal and vertical diameters of the obtained disc boundary and that of the ground truth obtained from two expert ophthalmologists. For the 25 test images selected from the 110 colour fundus images, the Pearson correlation of the ground truth diameters with the detected diameters by the new method are 0.946 and 0.958 and, 0.94 and 0.974 respectively. From the scatter plot, it is shown that the ground truth and detected diameters have a high positive correlation. This computerized analysis of optic disc is very useful for the diagnosis of retinal diseases

The electronic structure of anionic halide complexes of element 105 in aqueous solutions and their extraction by aliphatic amines

To study the complex formation of group 5 elements (Nb, Ta, Ha, and pseudoanalog Pa) in aqueous HCI solutions of medium and high concentrations the electronic structures of anionic complexes of these elements [MCl_6]^-, [MOCl_4]^-, [M(OH)-2 Cl_4]^-, and [MOCl_5]^2- have been calculated using the relativistic Dirac-Slater Discrete-Variational Method. The charge density distribution analysis has shown that tantalum occupies a specific position in the group and has the highest tendency to form the pure halide complex, [TaCl_6-. This fact along with a high covalency of this complex explains its good extractability into aliphatic amines. Niobium has equal trends to form pure halide [NbCl_6]^- and oxyhalide [NbOCl_5]^2- species at medium and high acid concentrations. Protactinium has a slight preference for the [PaOCl_5]^2- form or for the pure halide complexes with coordination number higher than 6 under these conditions. Element 105 at high HCl concentrations will have a preference to form oxyhalide anionic complex [HaOCl_5]^2- rather than [HaCl_6]^-. For the same sort of anionic oxychloride complexes an estimate has been done of their partition between the organic and aqueous phases in the extraction by aliphatic amines, which shows the following succession of the partition coefficients: P_Nb < P_Ha < P_Pa.

La alfombra de la Tierra : el paisaje vegetal andaluz.

El concepto de paisaje puede que sea uno de los más intuitivos y fáciles de entender. Tras esta aparente simplicidad se esconde uno de los conceptos más complejos de interpretar. El paisaje ha sido abordado por distintas disciplinas científicas: la biología, la geología, la geografía, las ciencias sociales y son muy numerosas las escuelas que plantean visiones muy distintas sobre la realidad que supone. En esta unidad didáctica se ha abordado sólo uno de los aspectos del estudio del paisaje: la vegetación. Junto a la orografía, es uno de los elementos más visibles del mismo y, como base de la vida en la Tierra tal y como la entendemos, forma parte de la mayoría de las interacciones que se producen en un espacio concreto: regulación climática, producción y retención de suelo, cobijo y alimento para los animales que allí viven y, una vez reciclada, para las propias plantas.

Algunes propostes didàctiques mitjançant l'estudi d'una espècie vegetal comuna. 'Algunas propuestas didácticas mediante el estudio de una especie vegetal común'.

Uno de los objetivos de la enseñanza de las ciencias de la naturaleza en la ESO es tratar y trabajar los distintos modelos de organización de los seres vivos a la vez que destacar la gran diversidad de formas de vida. Por otro lado cabe tener presente que la necesaria contextualización del currículum en las Baleares promueve el conocimiento de las principales especies de animales y plantas de los ecosistemas más representativos del archipiélago. Se presentan seis propuestas didácticas dirigidas al alumnado del primer o segundo ciclo de ESO, que evidentemente se deben adecuar al centro de trabajo, los cursos seleccionados y a la disponibilidad de materiales. Se considera que la especie vegetal Cneorum tricoccon, llamada vulgarmente acebuche, puede ser una planta muy adecuada para este estudio.

El paisaje vegetal de la Comunidad de Madrid durante el holoceno final.

Obra que recoge un análisis de restos vegetales aparecidos en yacimientos arqueológicos de toda la Comunidad de Madrid, desde la prehistoria hasta nuestros días. Los análisis de restos polínicos y vegetales de origen arqueológico, han sido comparados con secuencias similares procedentes de turberas y depósitos naturales del mismo ámbito geográfico, lo que permitirá evaluar hasta qué punto el hombre ha contribuido a valorar con mayor perspectiva el cambio social.

Paisaje vegetal al sur de la Comunidad de Madrid.

Índice general e índice florístico por familias

Variedad vegetal de la comarca de Sada.

Conocer por medio de la observación directa, las especies arbóreas que se encuentran ubicadas en la provincia de La Coruña. Alumnos y profesores de la segunda etapa de EGB, pertenecientes al Centro piloto Pedro Barrio de la Maza, de Mondego-Sada. La investigación parte de un análisis de las características dominantes de los suelos forestales de la provincia: permeabilidad, acidez, ausencia de cal, etc, y del clima. Posteriormente se realizó una excursión a la Fraga del Eume, para que los alumnos viesen en la realidad lo que habían estudiado. De toda la flora descubierta, los alumnos realizaron en clase un esquema de la vegetación silvestre primitiva del lugar en el que se hablaba del: sauce, abedul, aliso, castaño, espino, arce, roble, laurel, fresno, peral silvestre y madroño. Todas estas especies han sido descritas, una vez clasificadas, en todos sus aspectos: hojas, flores, frutos, virtudes, etc. Finalmente, un estudio sobre los incendios forestales. Todos los árboles de la Fraga son aprovechados por el campesino gallego para múltiples usos: leña, para muebles y construcción, gastronomía, para la fijación de terrenos, ornamentación y obtención de mimbres. Algunos poseen características medicinales. Los efectos del fuego: destruye el arbolado, el microclima, y produce cambios, facilitando la erosión. En el año 1975 se cortaron en el Ayuntamiento de Sada 11.750 árboles, con un total de 4.830 m/3 con un importe de 8 millones de pesetas.

Desarrollo de nuevas tecnolog??as de la informaci??n y la comunicaci??n (TIC) para la docencia pr??ctica en el ??rea de Conocimiento de Fisiolog??a Vegetal

Resumen basado en el de la publicaci??n

Catalase in fluvial biofilms: a comparison between different extraction methods and example of application in a metal-polluted river

Antioxidant enzymes are involved in important processes of cell detoxification during oxidative stress and have, therefore, been used as biomarkers in algae. Nevertheless, their limited use in fluvial biofilms may be due to the complexity of such communities. Here, a comparison between different extraction methods was performed to obtain a reliable method for catalase extraction from fluvial biofilms. Homogenization followed by glass bead disruption appeared to be the best compromise for catalase extraction. This method was then applied to a field study in a metal-polluted stream (Riou Mort, France). The most polluted sites were characterized by a catalase activity 4–6 times lower than in the low-polluted site. Results of the comparison process and its application are promising for the use of catalase activity as an early warning biomarker of toxicity using biofilms in the laboratory and in the field

Aproximació a l'evolució del paisatge vegetal a les comarques de la Selva i del Vallès

L'objectiu d'aquest article és presentar les línies bàsiques de l'evolució del paisatge vegetal d'una part d'una àrea geogràfica que des de l'antiguitat ha estat un passadís històric d'assentaments i comunicacions i que comprèn les comarques de la Selva, del Vallès Oriental i del Vallès Occidental Biogeogràficament es tracta d'una zona de contacte entre el món mediterrani, representat a nivell climàtic per l'alzinar litoral, i l'eurosiberià, que té com a principals comunitats climàtiques la roureda de roure martinenc i la fageda amb el·lèbor verd

Efecto de la aplicación de altas presiones hidrostáticas en un producto de origen animal, el jamón curado y en un producto vegetal, el nabo

High pressure processing is a food preservation technique which can be an alternative to heat treatment. Pressurization, in theory, produces changes in organoleptic properties and antioxidant compounds to a lesser extent. The objective of the present dissertation has been to study the effect of high pressure processing on oxidative processes and their relation to the organoleptic qualities of diced swede and packaged sliced ham. The results have pointed to pressurization at 600 MPa, and produce an effective decontamination is that which causes less loss of compounds or antioxidant properties. For swede, this pressure level also caused a minor modification of the organoleptic qualities. This dissertation has also shown that depending on feed composition, the effect of pressurization on the organoleptic qualities can be diametrically opposite.