This volume addresses the evolution of the visual in digital communities, offering a multidisciplinary discussion of the ways in which images are circulated in digital communities, the meanings that are attached to them and the implications they have for notions of identity, memory, gender, cultural belonging and political action. Contributors focus on the political efficacy of the image in digital communities, as well as the representation of the digital self in order to offer a fresh perspective on the role of digital images in the creation and promotion of new forms of resistance, agency and identity within visual cultures.
In image processing, "motions by curvature" provide an efficient way to smooth curves representing the boundaries of objects. In such a motion, each point of the curve moves, at any instant, with a normal velocity equal to a function of the curvature at this point. This book is a rigorous and self-contained exposition of the techniques of "motion by curvature". The approach is axiomatic and formulated in terms of geometric invariance with respect to the position of the observer. This is translated into mathematical terms, and the author develops the approach of Olver, Sapiro and Tannenbaum, which classifies all curve evolution equations. He then draws a complete parallel with another axiomatic approach using level-set methods: this leads to generalized curvature motions. Finally, novel, and very accurate, numerical schemes are proposed allowing one to compute the solution of highly degenerate evolution equations in a completely invariant way. The convergence of this scheme is also proved.
In science and technology, the images used to depict ideas, data, and reactions can be as striking and explosive as the concepts and processes they embody—both works of art and generative forces in their own right. Drawing on a close dialogue between the histories of art, science, and technology, The Technical Image explores these images not as mere illustrations or examples, but as productive agents and distinctive, multilayered elements of the process of generating knowledge. Using beautifully reproduced visuals, this book not only reveals how scientific images play a constructive role in shaping the findings and insights they illustrate, but also—however mechanical or detached from individual researchers’ choices their appearances may be—how they come to embody the styles of a period, a mindset, a research collective, or a device. Opening with a set of key questions about artistic representation in science, technology, and medicine, The Technical Image then investigates historical case studies focusing on specific images, such as James Watson’s models of genes, drawings of Darwin’s finches, and images of early modern musical automata. These case studies in turn are used to illustrate broad themes ranging from “Digital Images” to “Objectivity and Evidence” and to define and elaborate upon fundamental terms in the field. Taken as a whole, this collection will provide analytical tools for the interpretation and application of scientific and technological imagery.
A comprehensive, scholarly accessible study, in which the authors draw upon poetry and mythology, art and literature, archaeology and psychology to show how the myth of the goddess has been lost from our formal Judeo-Christian images of the divine. They explain what happened to the goddess, when, and how she was excluded from western culture, and the implications of this loss.
Image compression, the Navier-Stokes equations, and detection of gravitational waves are three seemingly unrelated scientific problems that, remarkably, can be studied from one perspective. The notion that unifies the three problems is that of ``oscillating patterns'', which are present in many natural images, help to explain nonlinear equations, and are pivotal in studying chirps and frequency-modulated signals. The first chapter of this book considers image processing, moreprecisely algorithms of image compression and denoising. This research is motivated in particular by the new standard for compression of still images known as JPEG-2000. The second chapter has new results on the Navier-Stokes and other nonlinear evolution equations. Frequency-modulated signals and theiruse in the detection of gravitational waves are covered in the final chapter. In the book, the author describes both what the oscillating patterns are and the mathematics necessary for their analysis. It turns out that this mathematics involves new properties of various Besov-type function spaces and leads to many deep results, including new generalizations of famous Gagliardo-Nirenberg and Poincare inequalities. This book is based on the ``Dean Jacqueline B. Lewis Memorial Lectures'' given bythe author at Rutgers University. It can be used either as a textbook in studying applications of wavelets to image processing or as a supplementary resource for studying nonlinear evolution equations or frequency-modulated signals. Most of the material in the book did not appear previously inmonograph literature.
Emphasizing the changes worked by circulation and copying, interpretation and debate, this book uses the case to explore how pictures succeed and fail, gain acceptance and spark controversy. It reveals how embryonic development was made a process that we can see, compare, and discuss, and how copying - usually dismissed as unoriginal
"Not only does Voss weave about these images a story on the development and presentation of Darwin's theory, she also addresses the history of Victorian illustration, the role of images in science, the technologies of production, and the relationship between specimen, words, and images."--Jacket.
The classic work on the evaluation of city form. What does the city's form actually mean to the people who live there? What can the city planner do to make the city's image more vivid and memorable to the city dweller? To answer these questions, Mr. Lynch, supported by studies of Los Angeles, Boston, and Jersey City, formulates a new criterion—imageability—and shows its potential value as a guide for the building and rebuilding of cities. The wide scope of this study leads to an original and vital method for the evaluation of city form. The architect, the planner, and certainly the city dweller will all want to read this book.
Defining the Chief Executive via flash powder and selfie sticks Lincoln’s somber portraits. Lyndon Johnson’s swearing in. George W. Bush’s reaction to learning about the 9/11 attacks. Photography plays an indelible role in how we remember and define American presidents. Throughout history, presidents have actively participated in all aspects of photography, not only by sitting for photos but by taking and consuming them. Cara A. Finnegan ventures from a newly-discovered daguerreotype of John Quincy Adams to Barack Obama’s selfies to tell the stories of how presidents have participated in the medium’s transformative moments. As she shows, technological developments not only changed photography, but introduced new visual values that influence how we judge an image. At the same time, presidential photographs—as representations of leaders who symbolized the nation—sparked public debate on these values and their implications. An original journey through political history, Photographic Presidents reveals the intertwined evolution of an American institution and a medium that continues to define it.
How did life evolve on Earth? The answer to this question can help us understand our past and prepare for our future. Although evolution provides credible and reliable answers, polls show that many people turn away from science, seeking other explanations with which they are more comfortable. In the book Science, Evolution, and Creationism, a group of experts assembled by the National Academy of Sciences and the Institute of Medicine explain the fundamental methods of science, document the overwhelming evidence in support of biological evolution, and evaluate the alternative perspectives offered by advocates of various kinds of creationism, including "intelligent design." The book explores the many fascinating inquiries being pursued that put the science of evolution to work in preventing and treating human disease, developing new agricultural products, and fostering industrial innovations. The book also presents the scientific and legal reasons for not teaching creationist ideas in public school science classes. Mindful of school board battles and recent court decisions, Science, Evolution, and Creationism shows that science and religion should be viewed as different ways of understanding the world rather than as frameworks that are in conflict with each other and that the evidence for evolution can be fully compatible with religious faith. For educators, students, teachers, community leaders, legislators, policy makers, and parents who seek to understand the basis of evolutionary science, this publication will be an essential resource.
