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Surveillance and technology are among the most prevalent phenomena in the developed world, the proliferation of which is abetted by an ever increasing profusion of products and services extending the competencies of these capabilities into new opportunities and markets worldwide. More significantly, this momentum is leading to a convergence of these disparate competencies towards a common techno-surveillant milieu. Yet much of what is written and theoretically understood about these topics (singularly and collectively) fails to provide for a unified accounting that anticipates either the trajectory or the heterogeneous forms of this converging phenomenon. This projects sets out to excavate why our understanding of techno-surveillance is so myopic. Following the evidence, I assert that this short-sightedness is not simply the result of methodological shortcomings. Rather, most researchers of surveillance and technology are blinded by philosophical presumptions (primarily grounded in epistemology) that exclude the kinds of questions (largely ontological) they must ask to go deeper in their investigations. This study examines the archaeological detritus of an early techno-surveillant system, the characteristics of which are typical of the kinds of systems that have come to challenge researchers about the implications of their analyses. Based on this analysis, this study proposes an ontological model, which I call ontigeny that is consistent with the evidence and helps to explain the heterogeneity of techno-surveillance, as well as its potential trajectories.

This thesis describes parameter field spatialization, a novel technique for creating and controlling spatial sound patterns formed along a surface, when working with sound synthesis and signal processing in a computer-music environment. Its main purpose is the creation of spatially-dynamic immersive sources in electroacoustic composition. This technique generates multiple decorrelated signals from a given sound process definition, which when spatialized at different locations can create a single enveloping auditory event with large width and heigth. By modulating parameters of the sound process differently for each signal it is possible to create a spatial surface pattern. The modulation signals are generated based on a mathematical model which assumes a surface encompassing all the loudspeakers and describes an abstract pattern in this surface through a mathematical function of time and surface coordinates, called parameter field. This research investigates whether parameter field spatialization can successfully create and precisely control spatial surface patterns, and how these patterns can be made into a compositional parameter in computer music. The technique was implemented in ImmLib, a software library for the SuperCollider audio-synthesis environment. Several specific examples of the combination of parameter fields with sound processes were investigated from a perceptual point of view, in listening sessions using two loudspeaker systems, one spherical and the other a vertical rectangular grid. A group of composers was invited to use the software for their own work, producing three pieces presented in public, which were analysed regarding the use of the technique. From this practical work findings relating to the most effective strategies regarding the use of parameter fields were outlined.

This research is based on my practice as a field recordist, a graphic designer and a visual artist. It is through an interchange between these three languages that I propose extended phonography, a form of expanding field recording through a plural and multi-sensorial practice that primarily intersects field recording, photography and design. Extended phonography is a site-and-context-specific practice—its multi-sensorial focus on the act of recording is also extended to its presentation making the recordings and their presentation inextricably linked. The strategies developed throughout this thesis provided me with a new insight into the acts of recording, composing and presenting. The final outcomes are still anchored in sound. However through extended phonnography, other nuances of the recorded event are explored in multi-sensory experiences. These experiences transcend the notion of recording as merely a tool for representation and veracity. In extended phonography the acts of recording and the act of presenting these recordings in different spaces, are simultaneously acts of composing. The portfolio of works comprises eight projects: Phragmites australis, Constructing a Soundscape, Sounds of the City, X Marks the Spot, Almost Sound Diary, Som da Mare: urn projecto participativo de arte sonora, and Moving Still. I also introduced some of the ideas behind my interest in—and reservations about—fostering collaboration and participation as catalysts for a shared understanding of place through the projects: Sounds of the City, X Marks the Spot, Almost Sound Diary, and Som da Mare: urn projecto participativo de arte sonora,. This research also presents how the term site, in extended phonography, is used to refer not only to the physical site, but also the contextual, the experiential, and the virtual site.

The text addresses the ways in which camera surveillance and, primarily, Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) is used to support the efficacy of governmental authority. The primary concern is the extent to which the video image has become integral to the exercise and the legitimization of the use of power and to provide support for State prosecutions and surveillance with particular reference to Canada and the United Kingdom. The thesis begins by introducing a short history of the use of CCTV in government, followed by a selection of example cases that illustrate the use of CCTV in British and Canadian court cases. The text then moves on to a theoretical evaluation of CCTV as a complement of the processes of governing and the establishment of what, in line with Foucault, I call the ‘institutional gaze’. In so doing it will show how the determination of the subject and the observer is also profoundly affected by this form of electronic media. The relationship between the individual and police and security services, the effect that media has on the way that space is perceived and how the camera has become an integral component of carrying out policing and security programs in contemporary life are major themes. McLuhan, Baudrillard, Virilio, Foucault and Derrida, among others, are consulted in order to evaluate the relationship between viewer, subject and space. Overall, the thesis is an evaluation of the experience of media, the determination of its impact and continuing influence on systems of power and the application of these determinations to the routine procedure of policing and prosecuting. The analysis shows how what is typically thought to be a linear and generally inert process of camera surveillance is in fact very complex and demands a nuanced appreciation for the effect media has on our understanding of the world around us.

Current means for simulation of impossible sonic realities are yet unmatched in the delivery of sound. This research is a preparation for fully immersive and interactive audition of composed music. The compositions submitted in this portfolio are experiments towards understanding newer technological ‘affordances and constraints’ and the possibilities these will engender. Having developed a proof of concept for my invention 3DBARE, which will allow fully immersive interaction with multi-channel digital audio, I have explored ways in which this creates new possibilities for the composer. This commentary reports the methods and rationale for virtual performance experiments in acousmatic compositions seeking either to simulate human agency or which are palpably unreal (“impossible music”) and in geo-located soundscapes. The works submitted are explorations of uses of both physical and virtual space for controlled indeterminacy of audition, with listener-action as the controller of the heard totality of the music. The control resides in the compositional methods and outcomes; the indeterminacy arises in the free variability of individual listener action to create differentiated consecutive auditions to the same music. Geo-location of composed sound is concerned both with augmentation of reality and the intersections of reality with virtuality. The experiments in geo-location revealed profound differences between current and proposed means of composing and of encountering composed sound. The discoveries made in the course of this research are outlined from acousmatic simulation to geo-located soundscapes in the search for ‘adequate means of listening’ to virtual performance. I have sought to identify the boundaries of auditory credulity in simulating ‘liveness’ in preparation for a system of immersive binaural sound reproduction: the means to ‘walk inside a piece of music’ and inspect it as though a physical object.

The quality of low frequency audio reproduction in small spaces has always been problematic. For some time, methods have been suggested in order to optimise this reproduction. Many such methods have been based upon objective metrics which remain unproven from a subjective perspective. Whilst perception has been studied, this thesis identifies a research gap for more thorough testing. A series of listening tests has been conducted, with virtual rooms auralised and presented over headphones in order to isolate specific modal parameters and allow efficient collection of subjective response from many listening environments. The work presented searches for optimal values and perceptual thresholds of three parameters - modal spacing, density and decay. Results show that optimal spacings and densities may only be defined where assumptions are made which are not valid in realistic listening spaces. Thresholds of modal decay1 have been defined, which are considered valid re- gardless of stimuli or replay level. These are around 0.2 seconds for frequencies above 100Hz, and increase sharply below this point to around 0.85 seconds at 32Hz. Through the testing of these parameters, it is shown that whilst discrimination between two rooms is usually a simple task, this does not reveal the underlying repro- duction quality. The perceived quality of the room response is of great importance, and new experiments assess this quality using a paired comparison method which provides a simpler subjective task than direct scaling methods. A set of descriptors is elicited which can be used to evaluate low frequency audio. These descriptors - articulation, resonance and bass energy - are used to assess the impact of three room parameters on perceived reproduction quality. Room response metrics are also eva- luated for perceived quality. Results reveal that modal decay is a primary indicator of quality, with shorter decays producing rooms with a higher perceived quality of reproduction.

Crowd analysis from video footage is an active research topic in the field of computer vision. Crowds can be analaysed using different approaches, depending on their characteristics. Furthermore, analysis can be performed from footage obtained through different sources. Fixed CCTV cameras can be used, as well as cameras mounted on moving vehicles. To begin, a literature review is provided, where research works in the the fields of crowd analysis, as well as object and people tracking, occlusion handling, multi-view and sensor fusion, and multi-target tracking are analyses and compared, and their advantages and limitations highlighted. Following that, the three contributions of this thesis are presented: in a first study, crowds will be classified based on various cues (i.e. density, entropy), so that the best approaches to further analyse behaviour can be selected; then, some of the challenges of individual target tracking from aerial video footage will be tackled; finally, a study on the analysis of groups of people from multiple cameras is proposed. The analysis entails the movements of people and objects in the scene. The idea is to track as many people as possible within the crowd, and to be able to obtain knowledge from their movements, as a group, and to classify different types of scenes. An additional contribution of this thesis, are two novel datasets: on the one hand, a first set to test the proposed aerial video analysis methods; on the other, a second to validate the third study, that is, with groups of people recorded from multiple overlapping cameras performing different actions.

This thesis presents research on several independent systems that when combined together can generate an automatic sound mix out of an unknown set of multi‐channel inputs. The research explores the possibility of reproducing the mixing decisions of a skilled audio engineer with minimal or no human interaction. The research is restricted to non‐time varying mixes for large room acoustics. This research has applications in dynamic sound music concerts, remote mixing, recording and postproduction as well as live mixing for interactive scenes. Currently, automated mixers are capable of saving a set of static mix scenes that can be loaded for later use, but they lack the ability to adapt to a different room or to a different set of inputs. In other words, they lack the ability to automatically make mixing decisions. The automatic mixer research depicted here distinguishes between the engineering mixing and the subjective mixing contributions. This research aims to automate the technical tasks related to audio mixing while freeing the audio engineer to perform the fine‐tuning involved in generating an aesthetically‐pleasing sound mix. Although the system mainly deals with the technical constraints involved in generating an audio mix, the developed system takes advantage of common practices performed by sound engineers whenever possible. The system also makes use of inter‐dependent channel information for controlling signal processing tasks while aiming to maintain system stability at all times. A working implementation of the system is described and subjective evaluation between a human mix and the automatic mix is used to measure the success of the automatic mixing tools.

The recent popularity of surveillance video systems, specially located in urban scenarios, demands the development of visual techniques for monitoring purposes. A primary step towards intelligent surveillance video systems consists on automatic object classification, which still remains an open research problem and the keystone for the development of more specific applications. Typically, object representation is based on the inherent visual features. However, psychological studies have demonstrated that human beings can routinely categorise objects according to their behaviour. The existing gap in the understanding between the features automatically extracted by a computer, such as appearance-based features, and the concepts unconsciously perceived by human beings but unattainable for machines, or the behaviour features, is most commonly known as semantic gap. Consequently, this thesis proposes to narrow the semantic gap and bring together machine and human understanding towards object classification. Thus, a Surveillance Media Management is proposed to automatically detect and classify objects by analysing the physical properties inherent in their appearance (machine understanding) and the behaviour patterns which require a higher level of understanding (human understanding). Finally, a probabilistic multimodal fusion algorithm bridges the gap performing an automatic classification considering both machine and human understanding. The performance of the proposed Surveillance Media Management framework has been thoroughly evaluated on outdoor surveillance datasets. The experiments conducted demonstrated that the combination of machine and human understanding substantially enhanced the object classification performance. Finally, the inclusion of human reasoning and understanding provides the essential information to bridge the semantic gap towards smart surveillance video systems.