Cervical cancer affects more than 0.5 million women annually causing more than 0.3 million deaths. Detection of cancer in its early stages is of prime importance for eradicating the disease from the patient’s body. However, regular population-wise screening of cancer is limited by its expensive and labour intensive detection process, where clinicians need to classify individual cells from a stained slide consisting of more than 100,000 cervical cells, for malignancy detection. Thus, Computer-Aided Diagnosis (CAD) systems are used as a viable alternative for easy and fast detection of cancer. In this paper, we develop such a method where we form an ensemble-based classification model using three Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) architectures, namely Inception v3, Xception and DenseNet-169 pre-trained on ImageNet dataset for Pap stained single cell and whole-slide image classification. The proposed ensemble scheme uses a fuzzy rank-based fusion of classifiers by considering two non-linear functions on the decision scores generated by said base learners. Unlike the simple fusion schemes that exist in the literature, the proposed ensemble technique makes the final predictions on the test samples by taking into consideration the confidence in the predictions of the base classifiers. The proposed model has been evaluated on two publicly available benchmark datasets, namely, the SIPaKMeD Pap Smear dataset and the Mendeley Liquid Based Cytology (LBC) dataset, using a 5-fold cross-validation scheme. On the SIPaKMeD Pap Smear dataset, the proposed framework achieves a classification accuracy of 98.55% and sensitivity of 98.52% in its 2-class setting, and 95.43% accuracy and 98.52% sensitivity in its 5-class setting. On the Mendeley LBC dataset, the accuracy achieved is 99.23% and sensitivity of 99.23%. The results obtained outperform many of the state-of-the-art models, thereby justifying the effectiveness of the same. The relevant codes of this proposed model are publicly available on GitHub.

The analysis of human facial expressions from the thermal images captured by the Infrared Thermal Imaging (IRTI) cameras has recently gained importance compared to images captured by the standard cameras using light having a wavelength in the visible spectrum. It is because infrared cameras work well in low-light conditions and also infrared spectrum captures thermal distribution that is very useful for building systems like Robot interaction systems, quantifying the cognitive responses from facial expressions, disease control, etc. In this paper, a deep learning model called IRFacExNet (InfraRed Facial Expression Network) has been proposed for facial expression recognition (FER) from infrared images. It utilizes two building blocks namely Residual unit and Transformation unit which extract dominant features from the input images specific to the expressions. The extracted features help to detect the emotion of the subjects in consideration accurately. The Snapshot ensemble technique is adopted with a Cosine annealing learning rate scheduler to improve the overall performance. The performance of the proposed model has been evaluated on a publicly available dataset, namely IRDatabase developed by RWTH Aachen University. The facial expressions present in the dataset are Fear, Anger, Contempt, Disgust, Happy, Neutral, Sad, and Surprise. The proposed model produces 88.43% recognition accuracy, better than some state-of-the-art methods considered here for comparison. Our model provides a robust framework for the detection of accurate expression in the absence of visible light.

Ti t l e An alysis of d o g s' sl e e p p a t t e r n s u si n g c o nvol u tio n al n e u r al n e t w o r k s

Computational approaches were called for to address the challenges of more objective behavior assessment which would be less reliant on owner reports. This study aims to use computational analysis for investigating a hypothesis that dogs with ADHD-like (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) behavior exhibit characteristic movement patterns directly observable during veterinary consultation. Behavioral consultations of 12 dogs medically treated due to ADHD-like behavior were recorded, as well as of a control group of 12 dogs with no reported behavioral problems. Computational analysis with a self-developed tool based on computer vision and machine learning was performed, analyzing 12 movement parameters that can be extracted from automatic dog tracking data. Significant differences in seven movement parameters were found, which led to the identification of three dimensions of movement patterns which may be instrumental for more objective assessment of ADHD-like behavior by clinicians, while being directly observable during consultation. These include (i) high speed, (ii) large coverage of space, and (iii) constant re-orientation in space. Computational tools used on video data collected during consultation have the potential to support quantifiable assessment of ADHD-like behavior informed by the identified dimensions.

Canine ADHD-like behavior is a behavioral problem that often compromises dogs’ well-being, as well as the quality of life of their owners; early diagnosis and clinical intervention are often critical for successful treatment, which usually involves medication and/or behavioral modification. Diagnosis mainly relies on owner reports and some assessment scales, which are subject to subjectivity. This study is the first to propose an objective method for automated assessment of ADHD-like behavior based on video taken in a consultation room. We trained a machine learning classifier to differentiate between dogs clinically treated in the context of ADHD-like behavior and health control group with 81% accuracy; we then used its output to score the degree of exhibited ADHD-like behavior. In a preliminary evaluation in clinical context, in 8 out of 11 patients receiving medical treatment to treat excessive ADHD-like behavior, H-score was reduced. We further discuss the potential applications of the provided artifacts in clinical settings, based on feedback on H-score received from a focus group of four behavior experts.