In the real world, a realistic setting for computer vision or multimedia recognition problems is that we have some classes containing lots of training data and many classes contain a small amount of training data. Therefore, how to use frequent classes to help learning rare classes for which it is harder to collect the training data is an open question. Learning with Shared Information is an emerging topic in machine learning, computer vision and multimedia analysis. There are different level of components that can be shared during concept modeling and machine learning stages, such as sharing generic object parts, sharing attributes, sharing transformations, sharing regularization parameters and sharing training examples, etc. Regarding the specific methods, multi-task learning, transfer learning and deep learning can be seen as using different strategies to share information. These learning with shared information methods are very effective in solving real-world large-scale problems. This special issue aims at gathering the recent advances in learning with shared information methods and their applications in computer vision and multimedia analysis. Both state-of-the-art works, as well as literature reviews, are welcome for submission. Papers addressing interesting real-world computer vision and multimedia applications are especially encouraged. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:  • Multi-task learning or transfer learning for large-scale computer vision and multimedia analysis • Deep learning for large-scale computer vision and multimedia analysis • Multi-modal approach for large-scale computer vision and multimedia analysis • Different sharing strategies, e.g., sharing generic object parts, sharing attributes, sharing transformations, sharing regularization parameters and sharing training examples, • Real-world computer vision and multimedia applications based on learning with shared information, e.g., event detection, object recognition, object detection, action recognition, human head pose estimation, object tracking, location-based services, semantic indexing. • New datasets and metrics to evaluate the benefit of the proposed sharing ability for the specific computer vision or multimedia problem. • Survey papers regarding the topic of learning with shared information.  Authors who are unsure whether their planned submission is in scope may contact the guest editors prior to the submission deadline with an abstract, in order to receive feedback.

IEEE transactions on pattern analysis and machine intelligence

Since the popularisation of the Internet in the 1990s, the cyberspace has kept evolving. We have created various computer-mediated virtual environments including social networks, video conferencing, virtual 3D worlds (e.g., VR Chat), augmented reality applications (e.g., Pokemon Go), and Non-Fungible Token Games (e.g., Upland). Such virtual environments, albeit non-perpetual and unconnected, have bought us various degrees of digital transformation. The term `metaverse' has been coined to further facilitate the digital transformation in every aspect of our physical lives. At the core of the metaverse stands the vision of an immersive Internet as a gigantic, unified, persistent, and shared realm. While the metaverse may seem futuristic, catalysed by emerging technologies such as Extended Reality, 5G, and Artificial Intelligence, the digital `big bang' of our cyberspace is not far away. This survey paper presents the first effort to offer a comprehensive framework that examines the latest metaverse development under the dimensions of state-of-the-art technologies and metaverse ecosystems, and illustrates the possibility of the digital `big bang'. First, technologies are the enablers that drive the transition from the current Internet to the metaverse. We thus examine eight enabling technologies rigorously - Extended Reality, User Interactivity (Human-Computer Interaction), Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain, Computer Vision, IoT and Robotics, Edge and Cloud computing, and Future Mobile Networks. In terms of applications, the metaverse ecosystem allows human users to live and play within a self-sustaining, persistent, and shared realm. Therefore, we discuss six user-centric factors -- Avatar, Content Creation, Virtual Economy, Social Acceptability, Security and Privacy, and Trust and Accountability. Finally, we propose a concrete research agenda for the development of the metaverse.

All One Needs to Know about Metaverse: A Complete Survey on Technological Singularity, Virtual Ecosystem, and Research Agenda

DeepSpectra: An end-to-end deep learning approach for quantitative spectral analysis

In steerable filters, a filter of arbitrary orientation can be generated by a linear combination of a set of “basis filters.” Steerable properties dominate the design of the traditional filters, e.g., Gabor filters and endow features the capability of handling spatial transformations. However, such properties have not yet been well explored in the deep convolutional neural networks (DCNNs). In this paper, we develop a new deep model, namely, Gabor convolutional networks (GCNs or Gabor CNNs), with Gabor filters incorporated into DCNNs such that the robustness of learned features against the orientation and scale changes can be reinforced. By manipulating the basic element of DCNNs, i.e., the convolution operator, based on Gabor filters, GCNs can be easily implemented and are readily compatible with any popular deep learning architecture. We carry out extensive experiments to demonstrate the promising performance of our GCNs framework, and the results show its superiority in recognizing objects, especially when the scale and rotation changes take place frequently. Moreover, the proposed GCNs have much fewer network parameters to be learned and can effectively reduce the training complexity of the network, leading to a more compact deep learning model while still maintaining a high feature representation capacity. The source code can be found at https://github.com/bczhangbczhang .

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Gabor Convolutional Networks

Steerable properties dominate the design of traditional filters, e.g., Gabor filters, and endow features the capability of dealing with spatial transformations. However, such excellent properties have not been well explored in the popular deep convolutional neural networks (DCNNs). In this paper, we propose a new deep model, termed Gabor Convolutional Networks (GCNs or Gabor CNNs), which incorporates Gabor filters into DCNNs to enhance the resistance of deep learned features to the orientation and scale changes. By only manipulating the basic element of DCNNs based on Gabor filters, i.e., the convolution operator, GCNs can be easily implemented and are compatible with any popular deep learning architecture. Experimental results demonstrate the super capability of our algorithm in recognizing objects, where the scale and rotation changes occur frequently. The proposed GCNs have much fewer learnable network parameters, and thus is easier to train with an end-to-end pipeline.

/pdf/gabor-convolutional-networks-1uto0gsgk2.pdf

A deep-learning based feature hybrid framework for spatiotemporal saliency detection inside videos

How to predict the sugariness and hardness of melons: A near-infrared hyperspectral imaging method.

Although a significant amount of work has been performed to preserve the ancient murals in the Mogao Grottoes by Dunhuang Cultural Research, non-contact methods need to be developed to effectively evaluate the degree of flaking of the murals. In this study, we propose to evaluate the flaking by automatically analyzing hyperspectral images that were scanned at the site. Murals with various degrees of flaking were scanned in the 126th cave using a near-infrared (NIR) hyperspectral camera with a spectral range of approximately 900 to 1700 nm. The regions of interest (ROIs) of the murals were manually labeled and grouped into four levels: normal, slight, moderate, and severe. The average spectral data from each ROI and its group label were used to train our classification model. To predict the degree of flaking, we adopted four algorithms: deep belief networks (DBNs), partial least squares regression (PLSR), principal component analysis with a support vector machine (PCA + SVM) and principal component analysis with an artificial neural network (PCA + ANN). The experimental results show the effectiveness of our method. In particular, better results are obtained using DBNs when the training data contain a significant amount of striping noise.

/pdf/what-s-wrong-with-the-murals-at-the-mogao-grottoes-a-near-4kds0whjrj.pdf

What’s Wrong with the Murals at the Mogao Grottoes: A Near-Infrared Hyperspectral Imaging Method

Monte Carlo Convex Hull Model for classification of traditional Chinese paintings

Chinese painting is famous and valuable for special painting materials, skills and final art effects used, yet this has resulted in many fake paintings being produced. Those fake paintings were normally made by using modern high resolution scanning and printing technology, thus it is very hard to identify the fake ones by human vision. To address this challenging problem, in this paper, a hyperspectral image based features fusion method is proposed. Firstly, we scan Chinese paintings using a visual band hyperspectral camera with the spectral frequency ranging from 400 to 900 nm. Then, the spectral and spatial features are extracted respectively by using the principal component analysis and a convolution neural network. Finally, we fuse these two kinds of features and input the feature set into a support vector machines for classification. All samples of real and fake paintings are obtained from local Chinese painting organization. The experimental result shows the effectiveness of the proposed method with an accuracy achieved of 84.6 %, which is significantly higher than other approaches where only spectral or spatial feature is used.

Dong Zhang

Papers

A deep-learning based feature hybrid framework for spatiotemporal saliency detection inside videos

How to predict the sugariness and hardness of melons: A near-infrared hyperspectral imaging method.

What’s Wrong with the Murals at the Mogao Grottoes: A Near-Infrared Hyperspectral Imaging Method

Monte Carlo Convex Hull Model for classification of traditional Chinese paintings

Fake modern Chinese painting identification based on spectral---spatial feature fusion on hyperspectral image