Visual Interpretation Research Articles

AutoDDI: Drug-Drug Interaction Prediction With Automated Graph Neural Network.

Drug-drug interaction (DDI) has attracted widespread attention because when incompatible drugs are taken together, DDI will lead to adverse effects on the body, such as drug poisoning or reduced drug efficacy. The adverse effects of DDI are closely determined by the molecular structures of the drugs involved. To represent drug data effectively, researchers usually treat the molecular structure of drugs as a molecule graph. Then, previous studies can use the handcrafted graph neural network (GNN) model to learn the molecular graph representations of drugs for DDI prediction. However, in the field of bioinformatics, manually designing GNN architectures for specific molecular structure datasets is time-consuming and depends on expert experience. To address this problem, we propose an automatic drug-drug interaction prediction method named AutoDDI that can efficiently and automatically design the GNN architecture for drug-drug interaction prediction without manual intervention. To this end, we first design an effective search space for drug-drug interaction prediction by revisiting various handcrafted GNN architectures. Then, to efficiently and automatically design the optimal GNN architecture for each drug dataset from the search space, a reinforcement learning search algorithm is adopted. The experiment results show that AutoDDI can achieve the best performance on two real-world datasets. Moreover, the visual interpretation results of the case study show that AutoDDI can effectively capture drug substructure for drug-drug interaction prediction.

Hypertuned-YOLO for interpretable distribution power grid fault location based on EigenCAM

Ensuring the reliability of electrical distribution networks is a pressing concern, especially given the power outages due to surface contamination on insulating components. Surface contamination can elevate surface conductivity, thereby resulting in failures that can lead to power shutdowns. Addressing this challenge, this paper proposes an approach for real-time monitoring of electrical distribution grids to prevent such incidents. A hypertuned version of the you only look once (YOLO) model is tailored for this application. We refine the model's hyperparameters by integrating a genetic algorithm to maximize its detection performance. The EigenCAM technique enhances the visual interpretability of the model's outcomes, providing operators with actionable insights for maintenance and monitoring tasks. Benchmark tests reveal that the proposed Hypertuned-YOLO outperforms Detectron (Masked R-CNN), YOLOv5, and YOLOv7 models. The Hypertuned-YOLO achieves an F1-score of 0.867 and a mAP@0.5 of 0.922, validating its robustness and efficacy.

Visual Interpretation of Topology Optimization Results Based on Deep Learning

Visual Interpretation of Topology Optimization Results Based on Deep Learning

Combining visual interpretation and image segmentation to derive canopy cover index from high resolution satellite imagery in functionally diverse coniferous forests

Forest canopy cover is one of the most significant structural parameters of the forest stand that can be estimated using of aerial and satellite remote sensing. Even though sub-pixel analysis can be used to estimate the index on low-resolution imagery, high-resolution imagery provides more accurate details on forest canopy variability for ecological and forestry applications. However, the high variability of the images demands a more advanced approach to canopy cover measurement than the visual interpretation of single images or stereo pairs. These traditional methods are inefficient and limited in providing a comprehensive and accurate canopy cover assessment. An improvement of the method could involve classifying high spatial resolution images, separating and extracting the areas corresponding to canopy gaps, and generating canopy cover maps. This study offers valuable insights and reveals key differences between three methods for estimating canopy cover: ground measurements, visual photo interpretation and automatic extraction from classified images using pixel and object-based methods. The texture analysis approach was used for separating the “shadow” objects corresponding to gaps in the canopy from the shades cast on the lower trees. The sample plot-based visual interpretation of the images revealed comparable results between ground and satellite image canopy cover values (correlation coefficient of 0.74 for all plots), with lower correlations (r = 0.39) for uneven-aged stands. The results encourage the use of the texture analysis method, with satisfying accuracy (forest canopy cover differences of maximum 0.06 between ground, photo interpreted and extracted datasets). The method could be further integrated with complementary data like LIDAR or hyperspectral images.

Deep-Learning-Based Automatic Extraction of Aquatic Vegetation from Sentinel-2 Images—A Case Study of Lake Honghu

Aquatic vegetation is an important component of aquatic ecosystems; therefore, the classification and mapping of aquatic vegetation is an important aspect of lake management. Currently, the decision tree (DT) classification method based on spectral indices has been widely used in the extraction of aquatic vegetation data, but the disadvantage of this method is that it is difficult to fix the threshold value, which, in turn, affects the automatic classification effect. In this study, Sentinel-2 MSI data were used to produce a sample set (about 930 samples) of aquatic vegetation in four inland lakes (Lake Taihu, Lake Caohai, Lake Honghu, and Lake Dongtinghu) using the visual interpretation method, including emergent, floating-leaved, and submerged vegetation. Based on this sample set, a DL model (Res-U-Net) was used to train an automatic aquatic vegetation extraction model. The DL model achieved a higher overall accuracy, relevant error, and kappa coefficient (90%, 8.18%, and 0.86, respectively) compared to the DT method (79%, 23.07%, and 0.77) and random forest (78%,10.62% and 0.77) when utilizing visual interpretation results as the ground truth. When utilizing measured point data as the ground truth, the DL model exhibited accuracies of 59%, 78%, and 91% for submerged, floating-leaved, and emergent vegetation, respectively. In addition, the model still maintains good recognition in the presence of clouds with the influence of water bloom. When applying the model to Lake Honghu from January 2017 to October 2023, the obtained temporal variation patterns in the aquatic vegetation were consistent with other studies. The study in this paper shows that the proposed DL model has good application potential for extracting aquatic vegetation data.

Identification of geothermal potential zone associated with land surface temperature derived from Landsat 8 data using split-window algorithm

This study was conducted in the geothermal potential area of Mount Seulawah, Aceh province. Study was conducted using remote sensing methods in order to estimate and map the land surface temperature (LST). Data used in this study is Landsat 8 OLI and TIRS. Methods used in this study were split-window algorithm (SWA) to obtain the LST through NDVI analysis and landcover classification, and image enhancement to obtain the lineament density through visual interpretation referring to the results of band ratio and filter techniques. The results of the NDVI analysis show that the study area has a value in the range of -0.57 – 0.97. The results of the LST analysis show that the surface temperature in the area has a value in the range of 21.32 - 32.88 oC. Areas that have high LST values can be estimated as areas that have anomalies. Based on the results of the lineament density analysis, the higher density value in an area can indicate the better permeability where geothermal manifestations come out. The direction of the lineaments that control the study area is dominated by the northwest-southeast in accordance with the direction of the main stress, namely the Seulimum fault and the Aceh fault which also has a northwest-southeast direction. The overall results show that the Seulawah geothermal area is quite potential to be developed for the sustainable natural resource.

CoBjeason: Reasoning Covered Object in Image by Multi-Agent Collaboration Based on Informed Knowledge Graph

Object detection is a widely studied problem in existing works. However, in this paper, we turn to a more challenging problem of “ Covered Object Reasoning ”, aimed at reasoning the category label of target object in the given image particularly when it has been totally covered (or invisible ). To resolve this problem, we propose CoBjeason to seize the opportunity when visual reasoning meets the knowledge graph, where “ empirical cognition ” on common visual contexts have been incorporated as knowledge graph to conduct reinforced multi-hop reasoning via two collaborative agents. Such two agents, for one thing, stand at the covered object (or unknown entity ) to observe the surrounding visual cues in the given image and gradually select entities and relations from the global gallery-level knowledge graph which contains entity-pairs frequently occurring across the entire image-collection, so as to infer the main structure of image-level knowledge graph forward expanded from the unknown entity . In turn, for another, based on the reasoned image-level knowledge graph, the semantic context among entities will be aggregated backward into unknown entity to select an appropriate entity from the global gallery-level knowledge graph as the reasoning result. Moreover, such two agents will collaborate with each other, securing that the above Forward & Backward Reasoning will step towards the same destination of the higher performance on covered object reasoning. To our best knowledge, this is the first work on Covered Object Reasoning with Knowledge Graphs and reinforced Multi-Agent collaboration. Particularly, our study on Covered Object Reasoning and the proposed model CoBjeason could offer novel insights into more basic Computer Vision (CV) tasks, such as Semantic Segmentation with better understanding on the current scene when some objects are blurred or covered, Visual Question Answering with enhancement on the inference in more complicated visual context when some objects are covered or invisible, and Image Caption Generation with the augmentation on the richness of visual context for images containing partially visible objects. The improvement on the above basic CV tasks can further refine more complicated ones involved with nuanced visual interpretation like Autonomous Driving, where the recognition and reasoning on partially visible or covered object are critical. According to the experimental results, our proposed CoBjeason can achieve the best overall ranking performance on covered object reasoning compared with other models, meanwhile enjoying the advantage of lower “ exploration cost ”, with the insensitivity against the long-tail covered objects and the acceptable time complexity.

Rapid, visual, label-based biosensor platform for identification of hepatitis C virus in clinical applications

ObjectivesIn the current study, for the first time, we reported a novel HCV molecular diagnostic approach termed reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification integrated with a gold nanoparticles-based lateral flow biosensor (RT-LAMP-AuNPs-LFB), which we developed for rapid, sensitive, specific, simple, and visual identification of HCV.MethodsA set of LAMP primer was designed according to 5’untranslated region (5’UTR) gene from the major HCV genotypes 1b, 2a, 3b, 6a, and 3a, which are prevalent in China. The HCV-RT-LAMP-AuNPs-LFB assay conditions, including HCV-RT-LAMP reaction temperature and time were optimized. The sensitivity, specificity, and selectivity of our assay were evaluated in the current study. The feasibility of HCV-RT-LAMP-AuNPs-LFB was confirmed through clinical serum samples from patients with suspected HCV infections.ResultsAn unique set of HCV-RT-LAMP primers were successfully designed targeting on the 5’UTR gene. The optimal detection process, including crude nucleic acid extraction (approximately 5 min), RT-LAMP reaction (67℃, 30 min), and visual interpretation of AuNPs-LFB results (~ 2 min), could be performed within 40 min without specific instruments. The limit of detection was determined to be 20 copies per test. The HCV-RT-LAMP-AuNPs-LFB assay exhibited high specificity and anti-interference.ConclusionsThese preliminary results confirmed that the HCV-RT-LAMP-AuNPs-LFB assay is a sensitive, specific, rapid, visual, and cost-saving assay for identification of HCV. This diagnostic approach has great potential value for point-of-care (POC) diagnostic of HCV, especially in resource-challenged regions.

Mapping Remote Roads Using Artificial Intelligence and Satellite Imagery

Road building has long been under-mapped globally, arguably more than any other human activity threatening environmental integrity. Millions of kilometers of unmapped roads have challenged environmental governance and conservation in remote frontiers. Prior attempts to map roads at large scales have proven inefficient, incomplete, and unamenable to continuous road monitoring. Recent developments in automated road detection using artificial intelligence have been promising but have neglected the relatively irregular, sparse, rustic roadways characteristic of remote semi-natural areas. In response, we tested the accuracy of automated approaches to large-scale road mapping across remote rural and semi-forested areas of equatorial Asia-Pacific. Three machine learning models based on convolutional neural networks (UNet and two ResNet variants) were trained on road data derived from visual interpretations of freely available high-resolution satellite imagery. The models mapped roads with appreciable accuracies, with F1 scores of 72–81% and intersection over union scores of 43–58%. These results, as well as the purposeful simplicity and availability of our input data, support the possibility of concerted program of exhaustive, automated road mapping and monitoring across large, remote, tropical areas threatened by human encroachment.

Sleep Research in the Era of AI

The field of sleep research is both broad and rapidly evolving. It spans from the diagnosis of sleep-related disorders to investigations of how sleep supports memory consolidation. The study of sleep includes a variety of approaches, starting with the sole focus on the visual interpretation of polysomnography characteristics and extending to the emergent use of advanced signal processing tools. Insights gained using artificial intelligence (AI) are rapidly reshaping the understanding of sleep-related disorders, enabling new approaches to basic neuroscientific studies. In this opinion article, we explore the emergent role of AI in sleep research, along two different axes: one clinical and one fundamental. In clinical research, we emphasize the use of AI for automated sleep scoring, diagnosing sleep-wake disorders and assessing measurements from wearable devices. In fundamental research, we highlight the use of AI to better understand the functional role of sleep in consolidating memories. While AI is likely to facilitate new advances in the field of sleep research, we also address challenges, such as bridging the gap between AI innovation and the clinic and mitigating inherent biases in AI models. AI has already contributed to major advances in the field of sleep research, and mindful deployment has the potential to enable further progress in the understanding of the neuropsychological benefits and functions of sleep.

Open-Pit Granite Mining Area Extraction Using UAV Aerial Images and the Novel GIPNet

The ability to rapidly and accurately delineate open-pit granite mining areas is pivotal for effective production planning and environmental impact assessment. Over the years, advancements in remote sensing techniques, including the utilization of satellite imagery, LiDAR technology and unmanned aerial vehicles, have revolutionized the way mining areas are monitored and managed. Simultaneously, in the context of the open-pit mining area extraction task, deep learning-based automatic recognition is gradually replacing manual visual interpretation. Leveraging the potential of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for real-time, low-risk remote sensing, this study employs UAV-derived orthophotos for mining area extraction. Central to the proposed approach is the novel Gather–Injection–Perception (GIP) module, designed to overcome the information loss typically associated with conventional feature pyramid modules during feature fusion. The GIP module effectively enriches semantic features, addressing a crucial information limitation in existing methodologies. Furthermore, the network introduces the Boundary Perception (BP) module, uniquely tailored to tackle the challenges of blurred boundaries and imprecise localization in mining areas. This module capitalizes on attention mechanisms to accentuate critical high-frequency boundary details in the feature map and synergistically utilizes both high- and low-dimensional feature map data for deep supervised learning. The suggested method demonstrates its superiority in a series of comparative experiments on a specially assembled dataset of research area images. The results are compelling, with the proposed approach achieving 90.67% precision, 92.00% recall, 91.33% F1-score, and 84.04% IoU. These figures not only underscore the effectiveness of suggested model in enhancing the extraction of open-pit granite mining areas but also provides a new idea for the subsequent application of UAV data in the mining scene.

Research on Individual Tree Canopy Segmentation of Camellia oleifera Based on a UAV-LiDAR System

In consideration of the limited accuracy of individual tree canopy segmentation algorithms due to the diverse canopy structure and complex environments in mountainous and hilly areas, this study optimized the segmentation parameters of three algorithms for individual tree canopy segmentation of Camellia oleifera in such environments by analyzing their respective parameters. Utilizing an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle-Light Detecting and Ranging (UAV-LiDAR) system, we obtained Canopy Height Models (CHM) of Camellia oleifera canopies based on Digital Elevation Models (DEM) and Digital Surface Models (DSM). Subsequently, we investigated the effects of CHM segmentation, point cloud clustering segmentation, and layer stacking fitting segmentation on Camellia oleifera canopies across different research areas. Additionally, combining ground survey data from forest lands with visual interpretation of UAV orthophoto images, we evaluated the performance of these three segmentation algorithms in terms of the F-score as an evaluation indicator for individual tree canopy segmentation accuracy. Combined with the Cloth Simulation Filter (CSF) filtering algorithm after removing the ground point cloud, our findings indicate that among different camellia densities and terrain environments, the point cloud clustering segmentation algorithm achieved the highest segmentation accuracy at 93%, followed by CHM segmentation at 88% and the layer stacking fitting segmentation method at 84%. By analyzing the data from UAV-LiDAR technology involving various land and Camellia oleifera planting types, we verified the applicability of these three segmentation algorithms for extracting camellia canopies. In conclusion, this study holds significant importance for accurately delineating camellia canopies within mountainous hilly environments while providing valuable insights for further research in related fields.

Convolutional neural networks for hydrothermal vents substratum classification: An introspective study

The increasing availability of seabed images has created new opportunities and challenges for monitoring and better understanding the spatial distribution of fauna and substrata. To date, however, deep-sea substratum classification relies mostly on visual interpretation, which is costly, time-consuming, and prone to human bias or error. Motivated by the success of convolutional neural networks in learning semantically rich representations directly from images, this work investigates the application of state-of-the-art network architectures, originally employed in the classification of non-seabed images, for the task of hydrothermal vent substrata image classification. In assessing their potential, we conduct a study on the generalization, complementarity and human interpretability aspects of those architectures. Specifically, we independently trained deep learning models with the selected architectures using images obtained from three distinct sites within the Lucky-Strike vent field and assessed the models' performances on-site as well as off-site. To investigate complementarity, we evaluated a classification decision committee (CDC) built as an ensemble of networks in which individual predictions were fused through a majority voting scheme. The experimental results demonstrated the suitability of the deep learning models for deep-sea substratum classification, attaining accuracies reaching up to 80% in terms of F1-score. Finally, by further investigating the classification uncertainty computed from the set of individual predictions of the CDC, we describe a semiautomatic framework for human annotation, which prescribes visual inspection of only the images with high uncertainty. Overall, the results demonstrated that high accuracy values of over 90% F1-score can be obtained with the framework, with a small amount of human intervention.

Human Impact Land Use Layer from the Canadian Forest Service National Forest Inventory

The Human Impact Land Use Layer (HILL) dataset was developed with visual interpretation of high-resolution satellite imagery. 26,388 2 × 2 km photo plots from the Canadian National Forest Inventory program were examined for any visible evidence of human impact within and outside of the photo plot boundary. The interpreter provided a detailed description of all human impacts and a measure of the total area of all the impacts in the plot. Human impact classes were developed from the interpreter’s plot descriptions. 45.7% of the photo plots have evidence of human impact within, or close to, the plot boundary. The HILL dataset could be used as a validation layer for human impact map products produced using Geographic Information System processes.

Python Software Tool for Diagnostics of the Global Navigation Satellite System Station (PS-NETM)–Reviewing the New Global Navigation Satellite System Time Series Analysis Tool

The time series of GNSS coordinates contain signals caused by the age-related movement of tectonic plates, the deformation of the Earth’s surface, as well as errors at different time scales from sub-daily tidal deformation to the long-term deformation of the surface load. Depending on the nature of the signal, specific approaches are used for both the visual interpretation and pre-processing of time series and their statistical analysis. However, none of the present software analyzes the nature of the residual errors but assumes their random nature and obedience to the classical normal distribution. One of the methods for analyzing the time series of coordinates with residual, unaccounted-for systematic errors is the non-classical error theory of measurements. The result of this work is a developed software solution for analyzing the time series of GNSS coordinates to test their normality, or in other words, to test whether a particular GNSS station is subject to the influence of small, unaccounted-for errors. Conclusions: After testing our software on four reference stations in Europe, we concluded that none of the chosen stations followed the normal law of distribution; thus, it is vital to perform such tests before conducting any experiments on the time series from reference stations.

Archimedes optimisation algorithm quantum dilated convolutional neural network for road extraction in remote sensing images

Roads are closely intertwined with human existence, and the process of extracting road networks has emerged as the most prominent task in remote sensing (RS). The automated road interpretation process of remote sensing images (RSI) efficiently acquires road network data at a reduced expense in comparison to the traditional visual interpretation of RSI. However the manifestation of RSI is completely distinct because of the great difference in length, width, material, and shape of road networks in dissimilar areas. Thus, the extraction of road network data in RSI is still a complex issue. In recent times, DL-based approaches have projected a famous development in image segmentation outcomes, but a lot of them still could not retain boundary data and attain high-resolution road segmentation maps while processing the RSI. Traditional convolutional neural networks (CNNs) demonstrate impressive performance in road extract tasks; however, they frequently encounter difficulties in capturing intricate details and contextual information. The study introduces a novel method, named Archimedes Optimisation Algorithm, Quantum Dilated Convolutional Neural Network for Road Extraction (AOA-QDCNNRE), to tackle the challenges encountered in remote sensing images. The AOA-QDCNNRE technique aims to generate a high-resolution road segmentation map using DL with a hyperparameter tuning process. The AOA-QDCNNRE technique primarily relies on the QDCNN model, which integrates quantum technology (QC) with dilated convolutions to augment the network's capacity to capture local as well as global contextual information. In addition, the incorporation of the dilated convolutional technique effectively enhances the receptive field without sacrificing spatial resolution, enabling the extraction of precise road features. To develop the road extraction outcomes of the QDCNN approach, the AOA-based hyperparameter tuning process can be exploited. The AOA-QDCNNRE system's simulation results can be tested on benchmark databases, and the results indicate that the AOA-QDCNNRE method surpasses recent algorithms.

Removing outliers from the normative database improves regional atrophy detection in single-subject voxel-based morphometry

PurposeSingle-subject voxel-based morphometry (VBM) compares an individual T1-weighted MRI to a sample of normal MRI in a normative database (NDB) to detect regional atrophy. Outliers in the NDB might result in reduced sensitivity of VBM. The primary aim of the current study was to propose a method for outlier removal (“NDB cleaning”) and to test its impact on the performance of VBM for detection of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD).MethodsT1-weighted MRI of 81 patients with biomarker-confirmed AD (n = 51) or FTLD (n = 30) and 37 healthy subjects with simultaneous FDG-PET/MRI were included as test dataset. Two different NDBs were used: a scanner-specific NDB (37 healthy controls from the test dataset) and a non-scanner-specific NDB comprising 164 normal T1-weighted MRI from 164 different MRI scanners. Three different quality metrics based on leave-one-out testing of the scans in the NDB were implemented. A scan was removed if it was an outlier with respect to one or more quality metrics. VBM maps generated with and without NDB cleaning were assessed visually for the presence of AD or FTLD.ResultsSpecificity of visual interpretation of the VBM maps for detection of AD or FTLD was 100% in all settings. Sensitivity was increased by NDB cleaning with both NDBs. The effect was statistically significant for the multiple-scanner NDB (from 0.47 [95%-CI 0.36–0.58] to 0.61 [0.49–0.71]).ConclusionNDB cleaning has the potential to improve the sensitivity of VBM for the detection of AD or FTLD without increasing the risk of false positive findings.

Deep learning and tree-based models for earth skin temperature forecasting in Malaysian environments

Predicting the Earth Skin Temperature (TS) using artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to offer valuable insights into environmental changes and their impacts. TS has significant nonlinearity due to several meteorological parameters, including average temperature, maximum temperature, minimum temperature, relative humidity, surface pressure, wind speed, and wind direction. This study introduced four machine learning (ML) models, namely solo Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM), Autoencoder-LSTM, Classification and Regression Tree (CART), and a hybrid Convolutional Neural Network-LSTM (CNN-LSTM), to predict daily averaged TS at different locations over the Malaysian region. In the first stage of the modeling development, Pearson Correlation (PC) was adopted to measure the strength and direction of the relationship between input and output variables. The statistical analysis and visual interpretations demonstrated that the Autoencoder-LSTM model outperformed the CNN-LSTM, LSTM, and CART models for each simulated city. The Autoencoder-LSTM model showed outstanding performance at Kuantan in comparison with the seven cities, achieving a coefficient of determination (R2 = 0.965), Root Mean Square Error (RMSE = 0.183), Mean Absolute Error (MAE = 0.142), and Nash-Sutcliffe Efficiency (NSE = 0.96). The research findings suggested that the coordinates of each station are crucial in determining the level of data randomness, which ultimately affects the learning process of the ML models.

Exploring new horizons in neuroscience disease detection through innovative visual signal analysis

Brain disorders pose a substantial global health challenge, persisting as a leading cause of mortality worldwide. Electroencephalogram (EEG) analysis is crucial for diagnosing brain disorders, but it can be challenging for medical practitioners to interpret complex EEG signals and make accurate diagnoses. To address this, our study focuses on visualizing complex EEG signals in a format easily understandable by medical professionals and deep learning algorithms. We propose a novel time–frequency (TF) transform called the Forward–Backward Fourier transform (FBFT) and utilize convolutional neural networks (CNNs) to extract meaningful features from TF images and classify brain disorders. We introduce the concept of eye-naked classification, which integrates domain-specific knowledge and clinical expertise into the classification process. Our study demonstrates the effectiveness of the FBFT method, achieving impressive accuracies across multiple brain disorders using CNN-based classification. Specifically, we achieve accuracies of 99.82% for epilepsy, 95.91% for Alzheimer’s disease (AD), 85.1% for murmur, and 100% for mental stress using CNN-based classification. Furthermore, in the context of naked-eye classification, we achieve accuracies of 78.6%, 71.9%, 82.7%, and 91.0% for epilepsy, AD, murmur, and mental stress, respectively. Additionally, we incorporate a mean correlation coefficient (mCC) based channel selection method to enhance the accuracy of our classification further. By combining these innovative approaches, our study enhances the visualization of EEG signals, providing medical professionals with a deeper understanding of TF medical images. This research has the potential to bridge the gap between image classification and visual medical interpretation, leading to better disease detection and improved patient care in the field of neuroscience.

Two Skilful Iconographic Interpretations of the Biblical Text by Nerio

Nerio’s initial D(e ventre matris mee...) from Gradual D of the Zadar Franciscans has been misinterpreted in scholarly literature, earning the miniaturist a bad reputation as an iconographer. L. Mirković did not recognize that the initial depicts simultaneously two connected events from Luke’s Gospel: Annunciation to Zechariah (Lk 1:5-25) and the Birth of John the Baptist (Lk 1:57-66). This article aims to prove the opposite, namely that Nerio was unusually skilled in translating the liturgical text into visual language. This opinion is supported by the analysis of Nerio’s cutting preserved at the British Library, depicting Christ, an apostle, and an executioner taking a sheep to be slaughtered. So far, no correct interpretation of this scene has been offered. The author considers it to be a visual interpretation of the First Response of the nocturnal Mass for Holy Saturday. The citation is taken from Isaiah (53/7) and reads: Sicut ovis ad occisionem ductus est et, dum male tractaretur non aperuit os suum (“He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth”). Nerio wanted to depict Christ’s silence and succeeded in doing so by introducing an apostle into the scene to enter into a dialogue with the executioner, indirectly emphasizing Christ’s silence. Christ seems to distance himself from the event, turning his back to it. Nevertheless, he turns his head back towards the executioner, recognizing his own fate in the sheep and accepting it without a word.