Graphic Files Research Articles

Three-dimensional graphic reconstruction of the insect exoskeleton through confocal imaging of endogenous fluorescence.

The exoskeleton of the cockroach leg was imaged via confocal microscopy to generate digital graphic reconstructions of its three-dimensional structure. The cuticle is autofluorescent and can be visualized without staining, but is maximally imaged in aldehyde-fixed preparations viewed under krypton-argon laser illumination (yellow green (568 nm) excitation, commonly used in confocal microscopes). Images of the entire trochanteral segment of the leg were constructed as montages from optical sections taken as overlapping series that were coincident in the z-axis. Reconstructions of the exoskeleton from these images showed that strain sensing mechanoreceptors are located in association with buttresses and thickenings that form a consistent internal architecture in both juvenile and adult animals. Accuracy of reconstructions was gauged by embedding specimens in Spurr's resin and histologically sectioning them perpendicular to the optical plane of section (z-axis). Comparison of plastic sections with two-dimensional images generated by "resectioning" the software model showed that reconstructed exoskeleton had a high level of accuracy. Imaging of older and larger animals was limited by the sclerotization and increased thickness of the cuticle. Surface extraction algorithms were used to generate vector graphic files in CAD format for export to software used in engineering and design. Among other potential uses, these models have been studied by Finite Element Analysis to examine the distribution of mechanical strains in the exoskeleton that occur during posture and locomotion. The advantages and limitations of the techniques are discussed. These methods may be used in studying the exoskeleton and the anatomy of cuticular mechanoreceptors of other arthropods to similar advantage.

Surface tension measurements of liquid metals by the quasi-containerless pendant drop method

The surface tensions of liquid metals, Zr, Ni, Ti, Mo, and Nb, have been measured at their melting points using the quasi-containerless pendant drop method. This method involves melting the end of a high-purity metal rod by bombardment with an electron beam to form a pendant drop under ultrahigh-vacuum conditions to minimize surface contamination. The magnified image of the drop is captured from a high-resolution CCD camera and digitized using a frame-grabber. The digital image is analyzed by reading the pixel intensities from a graphics file. The edge coordinates of the drop along rows and columns of pixels are searched by a computer program and stored in an array. An optimized theoretical drop shape is computed from the edge coordinates by solving the Young–Laplace differential equation to deduce the surface tension. The measured surface tensions are compared with available experimental results and theoretical calculations.

Popularity in Environmental Context: Facial Feature Assessment of American Movie Actresses

The relationship between facial features of popular American movie actresses and the social and economic conditions of the United States from 1932 to 1995 was investigated. Facial photographs of popular American movie actresses were located and digitally converted to graphics files to allow measurement of facial features. When social and economic conditions in the United States were stagnant and pessimistic, American movie actresses with mature facial features (small eye size, thin cheeks, and large chins) were popular: When social and economic conditions were prosperous and optimistic, actresses with neonate facial features (large eye size, round cheeks, and small chins) were popular: Results support the hypothesis that popularity and facial feature preference is related to and changes based on environmental security.

EXpTools: a C++ class library for animation, tachistoscopic presentation, and response timing.

The eXpTools Library is a general-purpose tool for developing psychological experiments that combine animation with tachistoscopic presentation. The library's C++ classes and assembly language functions are specialized for the creation of visual response time experiments. Its use is limited to variants of standard, 16-color, VGA high-graphics modes. However, it extends the capabilities of these modes through bit-plane animation techniques and a new, nonstandard, high-resolution graphics mode that will work with standard VGA cards and register-compatible cards. These techniques make possible a powerful animation class for managing complex animation or tachistoscopic presentations consisting of hundreds or thousands of frames. The library also combines such features as page flipping, screen blanking, video-refresh synchronization, interrupt-driven millisecond timing, interrupt-driven keyboard response collection, graphics primitives, bitmaps, and screen fonts. Utilities allow for the conversion of PCX graphics files and the creation of new screen fonts from monochrome bitmap files. The technologies and techniques underlying the library are presented along with an example program.

Software for localization and visualization of cavities in crystal structures and supramolecular assemblies

This paper describes the CAVITY software for a personal computer (AT/XT). The software is designed for seeking interstices, channels, and cavities in structures, calculating the volumes of closed cavities, constructing cross sections of cavities by the planes given by the crystallographic indices hkl or by the coordinates of points lying in the planes. The cavities and their cross sections may be visualized and stored as graphical files. The program calculates the distances between any points on the “cavity walls” and inside or outside the cavity as well as the nearest environment for any point inside the cavity. The data are input as a SHELX or ASCII file with Cartesian atomic coordinates.

Development and applications of a laser writing lithography system for maskless patterning

A laser writing lithography system is developed based on the 325-nm UV radiation of a helium-cadmium laser. A custom-built optical system with a modified microscope and computerized exposure and motion stages are the other main components of the system. The lithography system is able to process data input from industry-standard Caltech intermediate form (CIF) graphic files. We achieve a minimum linewidth resolution of 1.6 μm on a positive photoresist-coated silicon substrate written with a 10× UV objective lens of numerical aperture 0.20. Other processing parameters, such as the optimal writing speed and the amount of overlap for pattern generation, are also determined. Application of the laser lithography system is also demonstrated in the fabrication of a UV-detecting metal-semiconductor-metal diamond thin film photodetector and in the direct delineation of polythiophene polymer film. © 1998 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers.

Constraint‐based spatial representation technique for the container packing problem

The spatial representation technique is an efficient method for packing boxes into a container; however, it has a limitation in dealing with constraints. For practical applications, there are however limitations when dealing with constraints. These constraints provide flexibility for the user to decide which boxes should be placed first. After imposing the initial conditions, the optimisation packing algorithm based on the spatial representation technique ensures that the boxes remaining in the item list are packed as efficiently as possible into the container. The packing plan is then generated during the run time to provide visualisation of the result of actual packing sequences. It also simultaneously outputs a graphical file to the Autocad software for printing and detailed study. The program can be implemented under either the DOS platform or the Windows platform on an IBM PC. The performance is evaluated using data from another algorithm. The results confirm that the enhanced algorithm can manage the user‐specified constraints with good volume utilisation.

Multi-media integrated into CS 2

An interactive children's story is presented as a unifying class project for CS 2. Curricular topics include: data and algorithm abstraction, project dynamics (team work, software engineering and ethics), multi-media techniques, and hypermedia story telling. We encompass alternative learning styles by fostering collaborative team work, and promoting the big picture over esoteric detail. Students receive a detailed design document, extensive code libraries, and graphic, sound and video files. A story board gives them ample room for individual creativity and whimsy. The project is implemented in C++. This paper describes curricular goals, articulates management concerns and summarizes our past experiences.

Computerising emergency department guidelines with an Intranet

AbstractAn emergency department's guidelines/protocols can be transferred simply and cheaply to a secure ‘intranet’ using readily available software and hardware. This format facilitates revision and distribution of the protocols and provides access at the clinical workstation. The use of hypertext links facilitates access and allows incorporation of video, graphic and audio files to the protocols.

Performance tests of a satellite-based asymmetric communication network for the 'hyper hospital'.

The Hyper Hospital is a prototype networked telemedicine system which uses virtual reality. We measured the performance of a novel multimedia network based on satellite communications. The network was a hybrid system consisting of a satellite channel in one direction and a terrestrial channel in the other. Each user was equipped with a standard satellite communication receiver and a telephone connection. Requests from the users were sent by modern and telephone line and responses were received by satellite. The user requests were initiated by clicking buttons on a World Wide Web browser screen. The transmission rates of satellite and normal telephone-line communications were compared for standardized text data. Satellite communication was three to five times faster. The transmission rate was also measured for standardized graphical data (GIF format). With a file size of about 400 kByte, satellite-mediated communication was 10 times faster than telephone lines. The effect of simultaneous access on performance was also explored. For simultaneous access of nine users to a single graphics file, 78% of the transmission speed was obtained in comparison with that of a single user. The satellite-based system showed excellent high-speed communication performance, particularly for multimedia data.

An Expert Infobase System for Tracing Hazardous Materials in Engineering Documents and System Requirements for Materials Information Standardization

Abstract The Hazardous Waste Minimization (HAZMIN) Infobase has a Navy Aviation Depot's maintenance directives and processing procedures in digitized text and graphics files. It is important that all chemicals that are restricted in some manner by state and federal environmental and safety regulations are identified in the materials that are specified within the processing documents, by shop (work area), and to the level of the ingredients that make up the materials in use. Described will be how, by using the HyGEN Expert Infobase System technology and appropriate methodology, an audit trail for state and federal safety- and environmentally-restricted materials can be established against engineering and material documentations. The Expert Infobase system is an integration of infobase, database, and rule-based expert systems. HyGEN software can synergistically integrate a select set of off-the-shelf PC software and can provide the system with relational capabilities such as database to text and vice versa, in addition to the common database to database. Also, there are database or text to graphics cross-relating capabilities. The system can possess similar properties as those of the object-oriented programming technology. These capabilities can furthermore be synergized to successfully design and automatically manage complex information structures such as with repeating data groups nesting within another level of repeating data group. Also described will be the organizing approaches for viewing information from several perspectives yet using the same basic information set.

INFO-U FAXBACK: DELIVERING CONSUMER INFORMATION WITH FAX-ON-DEMAND TECHNOLOGY

Consumers applaud the Minnesota Extension Service, INFO-U FAXBACK system that delivers consumer horticulture publications 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Consumers call the fax-on-demand system and, following voice instructions, use the phone key pad to enter their fax number and select a publication or a catalog of over 300 yard care and gardening titles. Documents selected are transmitted immediately to the fax number entered. Delivery cost runs $0.18 per document in the metro toll-free calling area, and $1.64 for long-distance calls. Compared to $2.75 for printing, postage, and handling per fact sheet sent by mail, the system saved $7000 in 1995 transmitting 2722 publications. Investment in system hardware and software runs $6000 to $8000. Documents can be stored as DOS text, which eliminates artwork and formatting, or scanned as graphic files that require 40 times more hard drive storage space. A document requires a one-time investment in staff time of 10–60 minutes to reformat for the fax-on-demand protocol.

Encyclopedia of Graphics File Formats, 2nd ed. [Books

Encyclopedia of Graphics File Formats, 2nd ed. [Books

System generator for producing manufacturing applications

The Application System Generator (ASG/pc) offers powerful capabilities for integrating the personal computer into problem-solving in manufacturing engineering. Implemented on Pentium™-class personal computers, it provides an easy-to-use, application-building platform for mathematically based solutions to a variety of engineering problems. The ASG/pc provides a master editor for incrementally developing the complete environment of an entire application. Such an application may entail hundreds of programs, most of which are automatically generated. These programs also include color-coded textual and graphic screen interactions, keyboard control, file management, and access to auxiliary equipment. The ASG/pc is designed for use by the application-domain engineer who will also be the end user of the technology. Facilities are provided for the integration of components developed through teamwork. Two applications of the ASG/pc are described: one is in the domain of rapid-response machining; the second is a system for rapid analysis and redesign of the factory floor. The ASG/pc was designed to facilitate an incremental, self-learning process.

TreeView: an application to display phylogenetic trees on personal computers.

TreeView is a simple, easy to use phylogenetic tree viewing utility that runs under both MacOS (on Apple Macintosh computers) and under Microsoft Windows on Intel based computers, the two most common personal computers used by biologists. Some phylogeny programs, such as PAUP (Swofford, 1993) and MacClade (Maddison and Maddison, 1992) already provide excellent tree drawing and printing facilities, however at present these programs are restricted to Apple Macintosh computers. Furthermore, they require the user to load a data set before any trees can be displayed which is inconvenient if the user simply wants to view the trees. More portable programs, such as DRAWGRAM and DRAWTREE in the PHYLIP package (Felsenstein, 1993) can run on both MacOS and Windows computers, but make little, if any use of the graphical interface features available under those operating systems. TreeView runs as a native application on either MacOS or Windows computers, enables the user to use the standard fonts installed on their machine, their printer, and supports the relevant native graphics format (PICT and Windows metafile) for either creating graphics files or pasting pictures to other applications via the clipboard. The program also supports standard file operations, such as 'drag and drop' whereby dragging a file's icon onto the program opens that file. TreeView can read a range of tree file formats (see below) and can display trees in a range of styles (Fig. 1). Additional information, such as edge lengths and internal node labels can also be displayed. The order of the terminal taxa in the tree can be altered, and the tree can be rerooted. If the tree file contains more than one tree the user can view each tree in turn. The program can also save trees in a variety of file formats, so that it can be used to move trees between programs that use different file formats.

Supporting geoscience with graphical-user-interface Internet tools for the Macintosh

This paper describes a suite of Macintosh graphical-user-interface (GUI) software programs that can be used in conjunction with the Internet to support geoscience education. These software programs allow science educators to access and retrieve a large body of resources from an increasing number of network sites, taking advantage of the intuitive, simple-to-use Macintosh operating system. With these tools, educators easily can locate, download, and exchange not only text files but also sound resources, video movie clips, and software application files from their desktop computers. Another major advantage of these software tools is that they are available at no cost and may be distributed freely. The following GUI software tools are described including examples of how they can be used in an educational setting: 1. ∗ Eudora—an e-mail program 2. ∗ NewsWatcher—a newsreader 3. ∗ TurboGopher—a Gopher program 4. ∗ Fetch—a software application for easy File Transfer Protocol (FTP) 5. ∗ NCSA Mosaic—a worldwide hypertext browsing program. An explosive growth of online archives currently is underway as new electronic sites are being added continuously to the Internet. Many of these resources may be of interest to science educators who learn they can share not only ASCII text files, but also graphic image files, sound resources, QuickTime movie clips, and hypermedia projects with colleagues from locations around the world. These powerful, yet simple to learn GUI software tools are providing a revolution in how knowledge can be accessed, retrieved, and shared.

A quasi-containerless pendant drop method for surface tension measurements on molten metals and alloys

A quasi-containerles pendant drop method for measuring the surface tension of molten metals and alloys is being developed. The technique involves melting the end of a high-purity metal rod by bombardment with an electron beam to form a pendant drop under ultra-high-vacuum conditions to minimize surface contamination. The magnified image of the drop is captured from a high-resolution CCD camera. The digitized image of the drop is then analyzed to compute the surface tension. A computer program has been developed that reads the pixel intensities from a graphics file containing the digital image. The code searches for the edge of the drop along rows and columns of pixels and stores the edge coordinates in an array. It then computes an optimized theoretical drop shape by solving the Young-Lapface differential equation from which the quantity of surface tension is deduced. This technique has been demonstrated with the surface tension measurement of molten zirconium metal.

Displaying radiologic images on personal computers: practical applications and uses.

This is the fifth and final article in our series for radiologists and imaging scientists on displaying, manipulating, and analyzing radiologic images on personal computers (PCs). There are many methods of transferring radiologic images into a PC, including transfer over a network, transfer from an imaging modality storage archive, using a frame grabber in the image display console, and digitizing a radiograph or 35-mm slide. Depending on the transfer method, the image file may be an extended gray-scale contrast, 16-bit raster file or an 8-bit PC graphics file. On the PC, the image can be viewed, analyzed, enhanced, and annotated. Some specific uses and applications include making 35-mm slides, printing images for publication, making posters and handouts, facsimile (fax) transmission to referring clinicians, converting radiologic images into medical illustrations, creating a digital teaching file, and using a network to disseminate teaching material. We are distributing a 16-bit image display and analysis program for Macintosh computers, Dr Razz, that illustrates many of the principles discussed in this review series. The program is available for no charge by anonymous file transfer protocol (ftp).

USING SOFTWARE TO GENERATE SURVEY PLANS

Abstract A contrast between traditional and modern survey operations is drawn. The concept of a Graphics Compiler is discussed followed by a detailed description of the author's implementation of SurvPlan, a computer program which reads a text data file and generates a graphics file suitable for editing and printing by standard computer-aided-draughting (CAD) software.

Dataload: A user-friendly program to prepare binding data for the “LIGAND” software

This paper presents a program for the preparation of binding data to be used with the LIGAND software. This program will analyze saturation and competition/displacement binding data, and prepare all the necessary files that provide the input values for the final processing by the LIGAND package. Features include choices of different units for specific activity of the labeled tracer, and screen editing of the data, and results are provided as an average of replicates or as individual points. The program creates a graphic file to observe the raw data as a B T vs T graph, prior to the analysis with the LIGAND program. The program saves all the information in a session file. Calculation of the bound/free values for the raw data is also provided.