CT scans could bolster forensic database to ID unidentified remains

Cranium image reconstructed from CT scans. Credit: North Carolina State University

A study from North Carolina State University finds that data from CT scans can be incorporated into a growing forensic database to help determine the ancestry and sex of unidentified remains. The finding may also have clinical applications for craniofacial surgeons.

"As forensic anthropologists, we can map specific coordinates on a skull and use software that we developed -- called 3D-ID -- to compare those three-dimensional coordinates with a database of biological characteristics," says Dr. Ann Ross, a professor of anthropology at NC State and senior author of a paper describing the work. "That comparison can tell us the ancestry and sex of unidentified remains using only the skull -- which is particularly valuable when dealing with incomplete skeletal remains."

However, the size of the 3D-ID database has been limited by the researchers' access to contemporary skulls that have clearly recorded demographic histories.

To develop a more robust database, Ross and her team launched a study to determine whether it was possible to get good skull coordinate data from living people by examining CT scans.

The University of Pennsylvania Museum's Morton Collection provided the NC State researchers with CT scans of 48 skulls. Researchers mapped the coordinates of the actual skulls manually using a digitizer, or electronic stylus. Then they compared the data from the CT scans with the data from the manual mapping of the skulls.

The researchers found that eight bilateral coordinates on the skull -- those found on either side of the head -- were consistent for both the CT scans and manual mapping.

"This will allow us to significantly expand the 3D-ID database," Ross says. "And these bilateral coordinates give important clues to ancestry, because they include cheekbones and other facial characteristics."

However, the five midline coordinates the researchers tested showed inconsistencies between the CT scans and manual mapping. Midline coordinates are those found along the center of the skull, such as the bridge of the nose.

"More research is needed to determine what causes these inconsistencies, and whether we'll be able to retrieve accurate midline data from CT scans," says Amanda Hale, a former master's student at NC State and lead author of the paper.

This research may also help craniofacial surgeons. "An improved understanding of the flaws in how CT scans map skull features could help surgeons more accurately map landmarks for reconstructive surgery," Hale says.

Source: North Carolina State University

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Smartphone sensors leave trackable fingerprints

Example demonstrating how accelerometer data shared with separate traffic and health applications could indicate Bob's location. Credit: Image courtesy of University of Illinois College of Engineering

Fingerprints -- those swirling residues left on keyboards and doorknobs -- are mostly invisible. They can affirm your onetime presence, but they cannot be used to track your day-to-day activities.

They cannot tell someone in real time that after exercising at the gym, you went to office in a bus and played video games during lunch. But what if our hand-held electronics are leaving real-time fingerprints instead? Fingerprints that are so intrinsic to the device that, like our own, they cannot be removed?

Research by Associate Professor Romit Roy Choudhury and graduate students Sanorita Dey and Nirupam Roy has demonstrated that these fingerprints exist within smartphone sensors, mainly because of imperfections during the hardware manufacturing process.

In some ways, it's like cutting out sugar cookies. Even using the same dinosaur-shaped cutter, each cookie will come out slightly different: a blemish here, a pock there. For smartphone sensors, these imperfections simply occur at the micro- or nanoscale.

Their findings were published at the Network and Distributed System Security Symposium (NDSS), a major conference on wireless and web security, held last February in San Diego. 

The research also won the best poster award at the HotMobile international workshop in 

2013.

The researchers focused specifically on the accelerometer, a sensor that tracks three-dimensional movements of the phone -- essential for countless applications, including pedometers, sleep monitoring, mobile gaming -- but their findings suggest that other sensors could leave equally unique fingerprints.

"When you manufacture the hardware, the factory cannot produce the identical thing in millions," Roy said. "So these imperfections create fingerprints."

Of course, these fingerprints are only visible when accelerometer data signals are analyzed in detail. Most applications do not require this level of analysis, yet the data shared with all applications -- your favorite game, your pedometer -- bear the mark. Should someone want to perform this analysis, they could do so.

The researchers tested more than 100 devices over the course of nine months: 80 standalone accelerometer chips used in popular smartphones, 25 Android phones, and 2 tablets.

The accelerometers in all permutations were selected from different manufacturers, to ensure that the fingerprints weren't simply defects resulting from a particular production line.

With 96 percent accuracy, the researchers could discriminate one sensor from another.

"We do not need to know any other information about the phone -- no phone number or SIM card number," Dey said. "Just by looking at the data, we can tell you which device it's coming from. It's almost like another identifier."

In the real world, this suggests that even when a smartphone application doesn't have access to location information (by asking "this application would like to use your current location"), there are other means of identifying the user's activities. It could be obtained with an innocuous-seeming game or chatting service, simply by recording and sending accelerometer data. There are no regulations mandating consent.

To collect the data, the researchers -- as with any would-be attacker -- needed to sample the accelerometer data. Each accelerometer was vibrated using a single vibrator motor -- like those that buzz when a text message is received -- for two-second intervals. During those periods, the accelerometer detected the movement and the readings were transmitted to a supervised-learning tool, which decoded the fingerprint.

"Even if you erase the app in the phone, or even erase and reinstall all software," Roy said, "the fingerprint still stays inherent. That's a serious threat."

At this point, however, there is no absolute solution. Smartphone cases made of rubber or plastic do little to mask the signal. Deliberately injecting white noise in the sensor data can smudge the fingerprint, but such noise can also affect the operation of the application, making your pedometer inaccurate and functionally useless.

If accelerometer data were processed directly on the phone or tablet, rather than on the cloud, the fingerprint could be scrubbed before sending information to the application.

That is, the pedometer application might only receive basic information like "300 steps taken," rather than receiving the raw accelerometer data. This, however, imposes a load on the phone's processor and, more importantly, reduces the phone's battery life.

The research also suggests that other sensors in the phone -- gyroscopes, magnetometers, microphones, cameras, and so forth -- could possess the same types of idiosyncratic differences. So even if, at a large scale, the accuracy of accelerometer fingerprints diminishes, when combined with prints from other sensors, an attack could be even more precise.

"Imagine that your right hand fingerprint, by some chance, matches with mine," Roy Choudhury said. "But your left-hand fingerprint also matching with mine is extremely unlikely. So even if accelerometers don't have unique fingerprints across millions of devices, we believe that by combining with other sensors such as the gyroscope, it might still be possible to track a particular device over time and space."

For smartphone users and e-book readers, smartwatch wearers and tablet devotees, perhaps the most critical take-home message, in the short run anyway, is the importance of vigilance.

"Don't share your accelerometer data without thinking about how legitimate or how secure that application is," Dey said. "Even if it's using only the sensor data, still it can attack you in some way. The consumer should be aware."

Source: University of Illinois College of Engineering

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From video camera to driverless shuttle vehicle

The EZ 10 shuttle vehicle. Credit: © EasyMile

A new type of driverless shuttle vehicle has been developed thanks to innovative computer vision guidance technology that enables the vehicle to locate itself on a roadway reliably and inexpensively. The technology, which is based on the use of simple video cameras, was developed by researchers at Institut Pascal (CNRS/Université Blaise Pascal de Clermont Ferrand/IFMA)[1]. It lies at the heart of the EZ-10 autonomous shuttle vehicle developed by Ligier Group[2], which will be unveiled at the Michelin Challenge Bibendum in Chengdu (China) from 11 to 14 November 2014.

Since the 2000s, a number of companies have sought to make cars autonomous using expensive and sometimes unreliable technologies[3]. In 2003, researchers at Institut Pascal decided to work on automated driving of urban electric vehicles using simple video cameras. 
The technology they developed is based on two stages. The aim of the first stage is to identify all the significant points in the immediate environment of the path followed, in a video recorded during an initial journey in which the vehicle is driven manually. The second stage corresponds to the automatic mode during which the vehicle continuously monitors its path, ensuring that the images provided by the on-board cameras correspond as far as possible to the sequence initially filmed. The initial video thus plays the role of a virtual track that the vehicle must follow when it travels in autonomous mode.

Since 2006, the researchers at Institut Pascal, in collaboration with Ligier Group, have been developing automatic driverless shuttle vehicles that can transport up to 10 people along short routes (in the region of one kilometer), rather like a horizontal elevator. The vehicles, which are designed to be used at specific sites such as industrial sites, airports and amusement parks, are able to deal with obstacles thanks to laser rangefinders fitted on all four sides of the vehicle. The shuttle vehicle can detect the presence of an obstacle at a distance of 50 meters and in this way modify its speed or even stop, depending on the potential danger. The researchers now intend to turn their attention to running a fleet of five vehicles at the Michelin Europe Technology Center at Ladoux. The aim is to deal with multiple and potentially simultaneous requests from call points or smartphones, in real time and on a large industrial site, rather like an automatic taxi service.

The localization technology, which is reliable and inexpensive, will be unveiled at the Michelin Challenge Bibendum in Chengdu (China) from 11 to 14 November 2014. Equipped with an access ramp for people with reduced mobility, the new EZ-10 shuttle vehicle will provide visitors with a completely automated transport service.

[1] Within the framework of the IMobS3 Laboratory of Excellence.

[2] It is marketed by the EasyMile company, a joint venture between Ligier and Robosoft Technology.

[3] For example: differential GPS (which is different from the GPS commonly used in cars) is not always reliable, especially in city centers, where the satellite signals can be reflected off the façades of buildings. This phenomenon can lead to erroneous location calculations.

Source: CNRS

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Fear and caring are what's at the core of divisive wolf debate

Fear and caring are what’s at the core of divisive wolf debate. Credit: Photo by G.L. Kohuth

To hunt or not hunt wolves can't be quantified as simply as men vs. women, hunters vs. anti-hunters, Democrats vs. Republicans or city vs. rural.

What's truly fueling the divisive debate is fear of wolves or the urge to care for canis lupis. The social dynamics at play and potential options for establishing common ground between sides can be found in the current issue of the journal PLOS ONE.

"People who are for or against this issue are often cast into traditional lots, such as gender, political party or where they live," said Meredith Gore, associate professor of fisheries and wildlife and co-lead author of the study. "This issue, however, isn't playing out like this. Concerns about hunting wolves to reduce conflict are split more by social geography and less by physical geography."

It's definitely an us-versus-them debate, she added. However, it took the concept of social identity theory to better reveal the true "us" and "them." Applying principles from social psychology revealed how the two groups were interacting and offers some potential solutions to get the vying groups to work together.

The team's findings are comparable, in part, to civil uprisings in the Middle East. The region is far removed from the United States, in terms of geography. Americans, however, tend to identify with a distant, threatened identity group, said Gore, an MSU AgBioResearch scientist.

"The concept of how our identity drives our activism is quite interesting," said Gore, who co-led the research with Michelle Lute, former MSU fisheries and wildlife graduate student who's now at Indiana University. "Our findings challenge traditional assumptions about regional differences and suggest a strong role for social identity in why people support or oppose wildlife management practices."

The majority of the nearly 670 surveys were collected from Michigan stakeholders interested in wolf-hunting as a management response to wolf conflicts. However, a small percentage of the data was gathered from participants in 21 states. While the study focused on gray wolves in Michigan, its results have implications for other states' policies on wolves as well as other large carnivores such as brown bears, polar bears, mountain lions and other predators, Gore added.

Noting that there's sharp polarization in debates about wolf management is not new. However, providing empirical evidence of its existence is new and meaningful because it provides a framework for improving engagement between the fighting factions.

For example, communications may be better directed toward each identity group's concerns of fear and care for wolves. These missives could be more effective than messages simply directed toward pro-hunters or anti-hunters. Identity-specific communications may also help build trust between agencies and stakeholders.

"These types of communications may not only build trust, but they can also contribute to a sense of procedural justice," Gore said. "This, in turn, may increase support for decision-makers and processes regardless of the outcome."

Also, by shaping and discussing the issue in terms of care and fear, rather than traditional qualifiers, may help usher in a greater agreement about management strategies.

Additional researchers working on this paper include Adam Bump, Michigan Department of Natural Resources.

Source: Michigan State University

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New laws threaten Brazil's unique ecosystems

Brazil's globally significant ecosystems could be exposed to mining and dams if proposals currently being debated by the Brazilian Congress go ahead, according to researchers publishing in the journal Science this week. Credit: Alexander C. Lees

Brazil´s globally significant ecosystems could be exposed to mining and dams if proposals currently being debated by the Brazilian Congress go ahead, according to researchers publishing in the journal Science this week.

The new report by a group of Brazilian and British researchers comes in the wake of Brazil´s recent presidential elections. It warns that new legislation could pose a serious threat to protected areas, weakening Brazil's international status as an environmental leader.

One of the proposals of particular concern is the call to open up 10% of the most strictly protected areas to mining. In a new analysis, the research shows that at least 20% of all Brazil´s most strictly protected areas and reserves for indigenous people overlap with areas that have been registered as under consideration for mining. In addition, many of the river systems associated with protected areas will be influenced by the construction of large hydroelectric dams.

The threat that this mining and hydropower poses to Brazil's ecosystems is not trivial. Areas of registered interest for mining include 34,117 km2 that are currently classified as strictly protected areas -- including National Parks, Biological Reserves and Wildlife Refuges. This is equivalent to an area the size of Switzerland. The situation is worse for indigenous lands, 28% of which, or 281,443 km2, overlap with areas of registered mining interest -- an area larger than the whole of the UK or the state of São Paulo.

In recent years Brazil has enjoyed increasing recognition as a world leader in combatting environmental destruction. Brazil´s protected area network is the largest in the world, while improved environmental governance in private lands has contributed to an 80% reduction in the rate of deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon over the last decade. Yet these new proposals could threaten these recent successes and undermine Brazil's reputation.

Dr Joice Ferreira, a scientist at Brazil´s agricultural research institute, Embrapa, and lead author of the study, said: "The purpose of this analysis is not to say that Brazil´s development should not benefit from its abundant natural resources, but that we should not squander our hard-won record of success and leadership in favor of fast-tracked and poorly planned development projects that leave a long legacy of environmental damage. It is possible to manage our development in a more sustainable way."

Co-author Dr Jos Barlow, a researcher at Lancaster University and a visiting professor in Brazil, said: "Rather than exploiting protected areas for short-term gains, Brazil should treasure them for the long-term benefits they can provide to society. The recent water shortages in the south east of Brazil emphasize the importance of protecting native vegetation across the country."

The authors of the study also warn that the proposals for minimizing and mitigating the environmental damage of large-scale development projects are so inadequate that even if only a fraction of these mining concessions were approved then the impacts could be enormous, especially in Brazil´s most threatened ecosystems.

Dr. Luiz Aragão a co-author of the study from Brazil´s federal space agency, INPE and the University of Exeter said: "Our concern is that even if the proposed mitigation actions were put in place they are oversimplified because they fail to take account of the indirect effects of mega-projects.
"These projects can involve thousands of workers and lead to rapid local population growth. This, combined with new roads and access routes, is a recipe for the emergence of new deforestation frontiers." explains Luiz.

The study highlights the fact that these worrying changes reflect an important shift in the support shown by Brazil´s federal government to environmental protection. These concerns come on the back of other recent changes, including the partial dismantling of Brazil´s protected area system to make way for development -- with some 44,100 km2 lost since 2008 due to downsizing or abolishment -- and the weakening of the Forest Code that gave an amnesty to landowners who deforested illegally in the past.

"Beyond the conservation and stewardship of its own biodiversity and environmental resources, so vital to the wellbeing of its citizens, Brazil plays a vital role in motivating and supporting the adoption of more sustainable development trajectories around the world," said Toby Gardner, of Stockholm Environment Institute, one of the authors of the study who has worked in the country for more than a decade. "Yet this standing is now in jeopardy."

Dr Joice Ferreira said: "The newly elected government has the chance to set the record straight and point Brazil firmly on a path of sustainable development. The authors of this report call on President Dilma and her government to ensure that individual development initiatives are subject to a comprehensive, socially inclusive, evidence-based and long-term cost-benefit analysis that compares potential environmental and social impacts against alternative development options. And also to ensure that Brazil´s renowned protected area network is given the resources it needs to manage our ecosystems sustainably.

"Above all we ask the Government to guarantee that important decisions regarding the management of Brazil´s natural resources involve the full and democratic participation of Brazilian society."

Source: Lancaster University

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Remote surveillance may increase chance of survival for 'uncontacted' Brazilian tribes

Members of an uncontacted tribe in the Brazilian state of Acre, as seen from satellite images.
Photo courtesy of Government of Brazil.
Credit: Image courtesy of University of Missouri-Columbia

Lowland South America, including the Amazon Basin, harbors most of the last indigenous societies that have limited contact with the outside world. Studying these tribes, located deep within Amazonian rainforests, gives scientists a glimpse at what tribal cultures may have been like before the arrival of Europeans. Now, researchers at the University of Missouri have used satellite images to assess the demographic health of one particular village of isolated people on the border between Brazil and Peru. Remote surveillance is the only method to safely track uncontacted indigenous societies and may offer information that can improve their chances for long-term survival.

Rob Walker, an assistant professor of anthropology in the College of Arts and Science at MU, collaborated with Marcus Hamilton, postdoctoral fellow at the Santa Fe Institute and adjunct assistant professor of anthropology at the University of New Mexico. They used Google Earth satellite imagery to estimate the area of the fields and the size of the village belonging to the tribe, as well as the living area of the tribe's temporary housing, and compared that with similar estimates for 71 other Brazilian indigenous communities.

"We found that the estimated population of the village is no more than 40 people," Walker said. "A small, isolated village like this one faces an imminent threat of extinction. However, forced contact from the outside world is ill-advised, so a non-invasive means of monitoring the tribe is recommended. A remote surveillance program using satellite images taken periodically of this group would help track the movements and demographic health of the population without disrupting their lives."

Using information captured from remote surveillance, scientists can help shape policies that mitigate the threats of extinction including deforestation, illegal mining and colonization in these remote areas. Additionally, surveillance also can help locate isolated villages, track patterns of migration over time, and inform and create boundaries or buffer zones that would allow tribes to stay isolated, Walker said.
"Close to 100 uncontacted groups are thought to currently exist in Amazonia," Walker said.

"Deforestation, cattle ranching, illegal mining, and outside colonization threaten their existence. Most of these tribes are swidden horticulturalists and so their slash-and-burn fields are observable in satellite images. But, they do move around, sometimes in response to external threats, and this movement requires constant monitoring if there is to be any hope of preserving their habitat and culture."

The study, "Amazonian societies on the brink of extinction," was published online in The American Journal of Human Biology.

Source: University of Missouri-Columbia.

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