Vision Insider
Cloudless atlas of earth
05/20/2013
Using two years’ worth of images taken by Nasa satellites, a mapping site called MapBox has created a brilliant cloudless atlas of Earth. The process begins with Nasa’s Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) technology, which can image the entire Earth every one to two days. The system is attached to the Terra and Aqua satellites that were launched into orbit in 1999 and 2002, respectively. The satellites and the MOD...
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Restore 3D vision with video games
05/15/2013
I’ve never been particularly interested in playing video games. Considering the fact that they can sometimes lead to addiction and/or violence, it actually makes me question whether or not they are best left alone, at least for young children. On the flip side, though, are the potential positives that games can bring to the table.As it turns out, playing the right video games may actually help you improve brain function, lose weight, and...
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The future is here
05/10/2013
Science and engineering aside, what is the first thing that you think of when the idea of 3D holographic images comes to mind? Star Wars? The Jetsons? Red Dwarf? For decades, the idea of 3D holography has been referenced in pop culture. So when William Hanna and Joseph Barbera portrayed the Jetsons’ using holographic televisions and telephones in 2062, just how grounded in reality were these depictions? As it turns out, the Hanna-Barbera...
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Respect the past, create the new
05/08/2013
Roughly translated from Japanese to English, the phrase onkochishin means “Respect the past, create the new.” For this particular blog topic that advice adheres well, as scientists have produced an audio file from a 128-year-old relic.Alexander Graham Bell, the man who is credited with inventing the first practical telephone, does not have a voice. This is not to say the man was a mute--he was not--but given that he passed away nea...
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The eyes have it
04/24/2013
Camera-based surveillance systems have definitely played an important role in helping to keep crime down. With the knowledge that their activities will be captured on cameras, members of the criminal fraternity have been dissuaded from committing felonious acts in the community.But while such systems are undoubtedly effective, they do cost money to commission and maintain. And that's cash that many hard-up communities may be loathed to part wi...
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My View
VIDEO BLOG - Psychometric theory
07/27/2011
VIDEO: Image-processing techniques may someday reveal much about our professional capabilities and potential--then again, some things are best left unsaid...
Editor's Note: Watch the video version of editor Andy Wilson's "My View" blog, where you'll get Andy's unique take on what's buzzing through the machine-vision marketplace or just what's been buzzing through his mind lately. You can also read Andy's "My View" as seen in the June issue of...
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VIDEO BLOG - Smaller on the inside
06/29/2011
VIDEO: The space-time continuum distorts perception of size -- a rule in physics that could as well be applied to the machine-vision industry...
Editor's Note: Watch the video version of editor Andy Wilson's "My View" blog, where you'll get Andy's unique take on what's buzzing through the machine-vision marketplace or just what's been buzzing through his mind lately. You can also read Andy's "My View" as seen in the May issue of Vision System...
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VIDEO BLOG - Trains and drains
03/09/2011
VIDEO: The interiors of drains, train tunnels, and arteries are not so dissimilar, and designers of machine-vision systems should bring 3-D imaging to this frontier...
Editor's Note: Watch the video version of editor Andy Wilson's "My View" blog, where you'll get Andy's unique take on what's buzzing through the machine-vision marketplace or just what's been buzzing through his mind lately. You can also read Andy's "My View" as seen in the Jan...
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VIDEO BLOG - Volume discounts do not apply
02/04/2011
VIDEO: System integrators face enough headaches trying to find and test components—could they get a little help from the OEMs?...
Editor's Note: Watch the video version of editor Andy Wilson's "My View" blog, where you'll get Andy's unique take on what's buzzing through the machine-vision marketplace or just what's been buzzing through his mind lately. You can also read Andy's "My View" as seen in the December issue of Vision Systems De...
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Sleeps with the fishes
12/07/2010
VIDEO: Dreadful things may happen to vision systems designers who fail to find components that stand the test of time...Editor's Note: Watch the video version of editor Andy Wilson's "My View" blog, where you'll get Andy's unique take on what's buzzing through the machine-vision marketplace or just what's been buzzing through his mind lately. You can also read Andy's "My View" as seen in the November issue of Vision Systems Design.
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