Image signal processors (ISPs) are historically grown legacy software systems for reconstructing color images from noisy raw sensor measurements. They are usually composited of many heuristic blocks for denoising, demosaicking, and color restoration. Color reproduction in this context is of particular importance, since the raw colors are often severely distorted, and each smart phone manufacturer has developed their own characteristic heuristics for improving the color rendition, for example of skin tones and other visually important colors. In recent years there has been strong interest in replacing the historically grown ISP systems with deep learned pipelines. Much progress has been made in approximating legacy ISPs with such learned models. However, so far the focus of these efforts has been on reproducing the structural features of the images, with less attention paid to color rendition. Here we present Color Rendition ISP (CRISPnet), the first learned ISP model to specifically target color rendition accuracy relative to a complex, legacy smart phone ISP. We achieve this by utilizing both image metadata (like a legacy ISP would), as well as by learning simple global semantics based on image classification – similar to what a legacy ISP does to determine the scene type. We also contribute a new ISP image dataset consisting of both high dynamic range monitor data, as well as real-world data, both captured with an actual cell phone ISP pipeline under a variety of lighting conditions, exposure times, and gain settings.

No description available.

During the 2001 war in Afghanistan hundreds of people associated with the Taliban or al Qaeda were arrested by United States forces and transported to the Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The legal status and treatment of these detainees has been an ongoing problem over the last five years. The majority have been given no recourse to justice and allegations of inhuman treatment and torture have been frequent. The first issue raised by the incarceration of these people is whether any of them may be entitled to Prisoner of War status. The evidence shows that, in general, the Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters were not lawful combatants, and hence they are not entitled to Prisoner of War status. While the rights of Prisoners of War are well documented and generally uncontested, the rights of people not entitled to Prisoner of War status are not so easily definable. Despite classification as unlawful or unprivileged combatants, the detainees are not in legal limbo - they are still entitled to the benefit of certain fundamental human rights. There are applicable protections under the Fourth Geneva Convention, Additional Protocol I, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the United Nations Convention Against Torture. The main rights upheld by these documents are the right to liberty and freedom from arbitrary detention; the right to a fair trial; and the right to life. Furthermore, there is a requirement of humane treatment and an absolute prohibition on torture. Reports from international humanitarian watchdogs such as the International Committee of the Red Cross, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch suggest that the United States Government is not upholding the rights held by the detainees. It is essential that the United States Government recognises the fundamental rights owed to the detainees and ensures that they receive the requisite treatment and access to justice.

Thesis (M.S.)--School of Advanced Air and Space Studies, 2008. / "June 2008." Vita. Includes bibliographical references (p. 85-91). Also available via the Internet.

1 Abstract Extraordinary Renditions and Human Rights Ing. Petr Švepeš The topic of this thesis is Extraordinary Rendition as the phenomenon of contemporary counter- terrorism strategies and its critical reflection in light of International Human Rights Law. Extraordinary Rendition represents a controversial method of obtaining intelligence information about terrorist activities carried out worldwide by the CIA. This method is based on the identification of terrorist suspects who might know valuable intelligence, followed by their tracing and subsequent kidnapping with direct assistance or connivance of the state in whose territory that person is located. Kidnapped persons are secretly transported by private jets via the "global spider's web" to a selected country which practices advanced interrogation techniques using various methods of torture. In this country the persons are incommunicado imprisoned and interrogated by local authorities. Extracted intelligence information is then passed on to the CIA and the suspects in this country are either criminally charged and indicted, further imprisoned without formal charges or simply "disappear." The main objective of this thesis is to present a detailed human rights analysis of Extraordinary Rendition and to identify potential violations of binding norms of...

The thesis is aimed at the investigation of niche applications of solid-state lighting with controllable colour-rendition, spatial, photochemical, and photobiological properties. In order to employ the controllability of light emitting diode (LED) based lighting technology, the research on such niche applications as artwork illumination and street lighting are focussed. The smart colour rendition engine (CRE), which allows for continuously tuning metameric spectra with different colour rendition properties, is introduced. The results on the subjective validation of the statistical colour rendition metric using the CRE are presented. The main requirements for artwork illumination are overviewed and the application of the intelligently controlled CRE in artwork illumination is investigated in two aspects: a) the establishment of subjective needs in colour quality of illumination as a function of the contents of artworks and the observers’ cultural background and b) the effect of the control of photochemical damage irradiance on the visual impression from artworks, while adjusting the chromaticity and colour rendition properties of the illuminant. The results on the optimization of the luminance distribution within an intelligent lighting installation for pedestrian areas using the identification of subjective impressions are presented. The low-circadian action LED source for outdoor lighting is introduced and the results on the assessment of photometric, colorimetric... [to full text] / Ši disertacija yra skirta ištirti kietakūnio apšvietimo su valdomomis spalvų perteikimo, erdvinėmis, fotocheminėmis ir fotobiologinėmis savybėmis galimus nišinius taikymus. Kaip nišinių taikymų pavyzdžiai, kuriuose ryškiausiai atsiskleidžia valdomo apšvietimo privalumai, buvo pasirinkti dailės kūrinių apšvietimas ir gatvių apšvietimas. Šiame darbe pristatytas išmanusis spalvų perteikimo variklis (SPV), leidžiantis tolydžiai keisti metamerinius spektrinės galios skirstinius, pasižyminčius skirtingomis spalvų perteikimo savybėmis. Naudojant SPV validuotas statistinis apšvietimo spalvinės kokybės vertinimo metodas. Apžvelgti dailės kūrinių apšvietimo reikalavimai bei pristatomi SPV pritaikymo dailės kūrinių apšvietimui pagal du kriterijus tyrimai: a) įvertinant apšvietimo spalvinei kokybei teikiamos subjektyvios pirmenybės priklausomybę nuo dailės kūrinio turinio ir žiūrovų kultūrinės kilmės; b) parodant regimosios išraiškos pokytį, atsirandantį dėl apšvietos lygio kitimo, kuomet fiksuojama apšvietimo fotocheminė įtaka apšviečiantiems paviršiams, kintant kokybiniams apšvietimo parametrams. Pristatomi apšvietimo skirstinio pėsčiųjų zonai optimizavimo rezultatai, gauti įvertinus subjektyvius poreikius. Pasiūlytas žemo cirkadinio poveikio kietakūnis šviesos šaltinis, skirtas lauko apšvietimui. Įvertintos tokio šaltinio fotometrinės, kolorimetrinės, spalvų perteikimo, fotobiologinės ir šviesinės taršos savybės bei atlikti tyrimai, įvertinantys psichofizines savybes.

Ši disertacija yra skirta ištirti kietakūnio apšvietimo su valdomomis spalvų perteikimo, erdvinėmis, fotocheminėmis ir fotobiologinėmis savybėmis galimus nišinius taikymus. Kaip nišinių taikymų pavyzdžiai, kuriuose ryškiausiai atsiskleidžia valdomo apšvietimo privalumai, buvo pasirinkti dailės kūrinių apšvietimas ir gatvių apšvietimas. Šiame darbe pristatytas išmanusis spalvų perteikimo variklis (SPV), leidžiantis tolydžiai keisti metamerinius spektrinės galios skirstinius, pasižyminčius skirtingomis spalvų perteikimo savybėmis. Naudojant SPV validuotas statistinis apšvietimo spalvinės kokybės vertinimo metodas. Apžvelgti dailės kūrinių apšvietimo reikalavimai bei pristatomi SPV pritaikymo dailės kūrinių apšvietimui pagal du kriterijus tyrimai: a) įvertinant apšvietimo spalvinei kokybei teikiamos subjektyvios pirmenybės priklausomybę nuo dailės kūrinio turinio ir žiūrovų kultūrinės kilmės; b) parodant regimosios išraiškos pokytį, atsirandantį dėl apšvietos lygio kitimo, kuomet fiksuojama apšvietimo fotocheminė įtaka apšviečiantiems paviršiams, kintant kokybiniams apšvietimo parametrams. Pristatomi apšvietimo skirstinio pėsčiųjų zonai optimizavimo rezultatai, gauti įvertinus subjektyvius poreikius. Pasiūlytas žemo cirkadinio poveikio kietakūnis šviesos šaltinis, skirtas lauko apšvietimui. Įvertintos tokio šaltinio fotometrinės, kolorimetrinės, spalvų perteikimo, fotobiologinės ir šviesinės taršos savybės bei atlikti tyrimai, įvertinantys psichofizines savybes. / The thesis is aimed at the investigation of niche applications of solid-state lighting with controllable colour-rendition, spatial, photochemical, and photobiological properties. In order to employ the controllability of light emitting diode (LED) based lighting technology, the research on such niche applications as artwork illumination and street lighting are focussed. The smart colour rendition engine (CRE), which allows for continuously tuning metameric spectra with different colour rendition properties, is introduced. The results on the subjective validation of the statistical colour rendition metric using the CRE are presented. The main requirements for artwork illumination are overviewed and the application of the intelligently controlled CRE in artwork illumination is investigated in two aspects: a) the establishment of subjective needs in colour quality of illumination as a function of the contents of artworks and the observers’ cultural background and b) the effect of the control of photochemical damage irradiance on the visual impression from artworks, while adjusting the chromaticity and colour rendition properties of the illuminant. The results on the optimization of the luminance distribution within an intelligent lighting installation for pedestrian areas using the identification of subjective impressions are presented. The low-circadian action LED source for outdoor lighting is introduced and the results on the assessment of photometric, colorimetric... [to full text]

Notre thèse s’inscrit dans le domaine de l’acquisition du Français Langue de Scolarisation (FLS) et Langue Seconde (L2) en plurilinguisme. Elle s’intéresse aux usages du lexique des verbes chez les collégiens francophones, pour lesquels nous esquissons des solutions à l’enseignement-apprentissage de ce lexique. L’objectif est de comprendre quels sont les verbes mobilisés par les collégiens de L2 pour exprimer des procès à l’oral. Nous nous appuyons sur un corpus oral collecté auprès des pré-adolescents et adolescents scolarisés dans la ville Camerounaise de Yaoundé. Les données empiriques ont été réunies, traitées, transcrites et codées conformément au protocole de traitement CHILDES (Child Language Data Exchange Système). Ainsi, la commande FREQ de CLAN a mécaniquement fourni des inventaires complets de verbes avec leur fréquence respective que nous avons classé par familles sémantiques après lemmatisation. Cette procédure nous permet de dégager le potentiel communicatif le plus fondamental des jeunes que devront corriger, accroitre ou organiser les cours de vocabulaire. Nos analyses sont basées sur l’étape de la formulation, sur le niveau conceptuel et discursif. Nous interrogeons les facteurs qui influencent l’acquisition du lexique verbal. / We are pondering over the acquisition of French as the language of education and as a second language in a multilingual situation. Our research study centers on the uses of verbs by French-speaking students. We propose some solutions for the teaching-learning of this vocabulary. The objective is to understand the verbs mainly used by secondary school pupils learning and speaking French as a second language. We have collected our corpus of analysis from pre-adolescents and adolescents in Yaoundé, Cameroon. These data were cross-checked, transcribed, processed, and coded in conformity with the processing protocol of CHILDES,( Child Language Data Exchange System). Hence the FREG command mechanically provided us with an exhaustive list of the verbs and the frequency at which they are used. These verbs were grouped according to their semantic contents after LEMMATIZATION (using the headword technique). This method enabled us to dig out the most fundamental communicative potential of the youngsters who will have to improve on, increase or organize vocabulary classes. Our analyses are concerned with the formulation phases, the conceptual and discursive levels. We are questioning the factors which influence the acquisition of verbal terms.

It has been two decades since the terrorist attacks on September 11. These events were the starting shot for the US war on terrorism, which has resulted in extreme challenges for human rights treaties. Several people have fallen victim to the US protection measures, which have included a detention and interrogation program and extraordinary renditions. The US protection measures have resulted in military invasions, kidnappings, detentions, and acts of torture. Even though black sites are no longer secret, has nobody ever been held responsible for these crimes. The question of who should be held responsible for the systematic violations of the United States is therefore necessary to discuss as this is a problem that characterizes the international legal system still today. The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether the US legal argument for justifying enhanced interrogation techniques and extraordinary renditions is consistent with the human rights treaties. The study examines the extent to which the US exercises jurisdiction over people who are subject to extraordinary renditions. Furthermore, it is also important to investigate if extraordinary renditions conflict with two treaties that have been approved in the United States and consequently the legitimacy of the arguments will be tested against CAT and ICCPR. The problem has been analysed in the light of jurisdiction. The interpretation of the concept of jurisdiction in general international law and human rights treaties constitutes an essential issue regarding states’ responsibilities to uphold and respect the human rights within the research area and research questions. The study focuses primarily on the question of when a state has obligations under human right treaties outside of its own territory. The issue of jurisdiction has been discussed primarily in international courts since Bankovic. The investigation shows that people that have been subject to extraordinary renditions as well as the detention and interrogation program fall under US jurisdiction. According to case law, the study establishes that the United States exercises effective control over the people in the event of extraordinary renditions. Moreover, the study claims that state responsibility can be attributed to the US for having failed in its obligations to respect and protect human rights in the war on terrorism.

Através do manejo do foco narrativo,dentre outros recursos literários, o Autor alterna e entrelaça narrativas de experiências de personagens oriundas de formações culturais diferentes com a representação do pensamento de cada uma delas sobre o passado, sobre si, sobre o outro e sobre vários espaços em que atuam. Esses espaços se revelam incongruentes com a idéia de um mundo sem fronteiras conforme se apregoa na modernidade tardia. O objetivo desta tese é discutir como aspectos do real histórico e do real psicológico nos tempos em que vivemos se sedimentam na forma deste romance contemporâneo / Through shifts in point-of-view, among other literary resources, the Author alternates and intertwines narratives of the experiences of two characters from contrasting cultural formations with narratives of their thoughts about the past, themselves, each other and the various settings in which they act. These spheres are rendered as incongruent with the idea of a world without borders, so often celebrated in late modernity. The aim of this thesis is to discuss how elements of present-day historical and psychological experience solidify in the form of this particular contemporary novel