Intravenous Paracetamol to manage pain Research Proposal

Intravenous Paracetamol to manage pain - Research Proposal Example Patients are bound to experience pain after the effect of anaesthesia given before surgery is finally gone. White et al (2010) had reported a result of surveys in Europe and the USA, stating the need to improve the quality of managing pain after surgeries. The practice then was to use opioids which have multiple adverse effects (AEs): constipation, urinary retention, vomiting/nausea, allergic reactions, confusion, sedation, respiratory depression, and hypotension. These AEs increased the cost of hospitalization and delayed the recovery of patients. A better way of managing pain was then under clinical trials for 15 years. It involved the use of analgesics that require less opioids. There was no FDA approved Intravenous Acetaminophen at that time. Cadence Pharmaceuticals Inc. patented the first I.V. Paracetamol in July 8, 2011 (US SEC 2011) and produced Ofirmev which, until the present, does not have a competitor worldwide due to the recognized protection for intellectual property. Th is gathered evidence about the efficacy and safety of using Ofirmev (the only available US FDA approved Intravenous Acetaminophen in the market), how it benefits patients, and actually improved the quality of pain management. There were evidences based on actual clinical trials with patients that proved the efficacy and safety of Intravenous Paracetamol to neonates, infants, children, adolescents, adults, and even the elderly with age 65 years old and above, for mild, moderate, and severe cases of pain, especially postoperative pain. Introduction Focus is given to the extent of actual benefits observed in many clinical trials, limitations, and clarifications pertaining to the use of I.V. Paracetamol use for postoperative pain management. As a background, over a year after the introduction of the US FDA approved injectable pain reliever under the brand name Ofirmev, doctors have pursued further clinical trials in Europe and the USA covering thousands of patients. One of the reference s of this paper took the effort to search for registered clinical trials in order to learn more about efficacy, safety, proportion of patients who responded favourably or not, to mostly postoperative cases. It would be interesting to know under what conditions I.V. Acetaminophen should be administered to patients. What procedures were followed? Why? There are very young to very old patients who encounter the need for surgery. How should it be given? In actual experiences, was it safe to administer the use of this analgesic to any of such patients? What are the chances of having a satisfied postoperative patient after using Ofirmev? For one thing, doctors excluded patients with symptoms pointing to contraindications against the use of Intravenous Acetaminophen. These are situations wherein patients have severe liver disease, hepatic impairment and active hepatic disease, allergic to acetaminophen, chronic malnutrition, severe renal impairment, and to patients with history of being al coholic. The US FDA (2012a) announced that the limitation per dosage of acetaminophen should be 325 mg. while the total maximum dosage per day must not exceed 4 grams. For infants, the recommended dose of the US FDA for acetaminophen in vial is only 50 mL per child weighing less than 33 kg. (US FDA 2012b, p.12) There were cases of acetaminophen over dosages in infants and adults in the past. For adults, from 1998 to 2003, a total of 131 people experienced â€Å"acute liver failure in the United States† due to acetaminophen overdose (US FDA 2012a). Nonetheless, the medical practice has changed from using mostly opioids like morphine and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) to the preferred use of Intravenous Acetaminophen in combination with less opioids only when needed, for reasons that will be disclosed in this paper. Problem and Purpose Quality management of postoperative pain requires provisions for the comfortable recovery of patients right after surgery. Unfor tunately, the use of opioids to

Global Warming Essay Example for Free

Global Warming Essay Global Warming is an issue that concerns almost everybody worldwide: it is the primary cause for the erratic and sometimes devastating weather that is experienced around the world. Global warming is causing the rise in sea level which in turn causes the flooding of coastal areas and areas with low elevation. Is global warming really happening today? Scientists with the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) believe it is so. It is indisputable that there has been a rise in the concentration of greenhouse gases (GHG) in the atmosphere during the last century, which scientists think may be one of the causes of global warming. II. Discussion A. Global Warming and doomsday Will global warming spell doom for our world? Scientists believe this to be so. Much depends on what actions we take now and in the coming years. Meteorologist Jagadish Shukla of the University of Maryland found out that deforestation would cause rainfall in the Amazon River to decline by more than 26 percent from the current 2. 5 m. to about 1. 8 m. a year. At the same time, the burning of fossil fuels, particularly coal and oil, produces sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides which are hazardous to the atmosphere. Findings show that a single smokestack may produce as much as 500 tons of sulfur dioxide a day. When these gases combine with oxygen and moisture, sulfuric acid and nitric acid is formed. The rain will carry the acids to the ground (acid rain) which may cause the depletion of calcium and magnesium in the soil, elements needed by plants for the formation of chlorophyll and wood, or it may cause the release of aluminum in the soil, which are poisonous and can kill the roots of trees (Carwardine, 2000). According to Dr. Sadik, UN population fund’s director, said that the more people increased pressure on already stressed lands, forests and water supplies. Other sources of climatic change were attributed to some forms of gases such as nitrous oxide, methane and chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) (Cronin, 2001). Nitrous oxide or laughing gas is a colorless gas with a sweet taste and odor that is used as an anaesthetic in minor surgery that H2O is responsible for about 6 percent of the human contributes to greenhouse warming. Methane or cow gas, on the other hand, makes up about 18 percent of human contributions to greenhouse effect. Cattle, sheep, goats, and other cud-chewing animals give off methane, in burps and flatulence as they digest. CFCs was discovered by Thomas Widgley Jr. , a chemist working at the Frigidaire Division of General Motors, used as coolants in refrigerators and air conditioners and aerosol propellants in spray cans, medical sterilizers, cleaning solvents for electronic components and raw materials for making plastic foams such as coffee cups. CFCs are estimated to account for 14 percent of global warming. Experts said that what is happening right now is not a matter of adding a few degrees to the average temperature of a community. A rise of this magnitude may cause life, for without the environment, creatures on earth cannot survive (Davidson, 2003). B. Recommendations a. ) Recycling and Reuse of Solid Wastes Solid wastes are now viewed as a potential resource which must be recovered and reused whenever possible. Since disposal forest resources are rapidly being depleted, recycling solid wastes offer a solution to both. Consider the element phosphorus. Mined from phosphate ores, it is manufactured into fertilizers. It enters the plant tissues and we obtain it when we eat plant as vegetable. This is later excreted and joins the sewage system. The sewage system sludge can be used directly as fertilizer or soil conditioner. b. ) Conserving our Forests Every now and then we receive alarming news about our forests being denuded. Big logging concessionaires indiscriminately cut down trees without undertaking reforestation measures. III. Conclusion Of all issues affecting humanity, climate change is the most pervasive and truly global, posing a very real and serious threat to our environment. Climate change is the alteration of the pattern of global climate that may be due to human activity that alters the composition of the atmosphere. If present day emissions of greenhouse gases continue, it is estimated that the rate of increase in global mean temperatures will reach about 0. 3o C per decade. This will mean a likely increase of 1o C above the present level by the year 2025, and 3o C before the end of the next century. Reference: 1. Carwardine, Mark (2000). The WWF Environment Handbook. London: Macdonald Optima. Attractively illustrated handbook for the general reader. 2. Cronin, Helena (2001). The Ant and the Peacock: Altruism and Sexual Selection from Darwin to Today. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Chapters 2, 3, 4 (pp. 7-110). 3. Davidson, Joan (2003). How Green is your City? Pioneering Approaches to Environmental Action. London: Bedford Square Press. Guide to community action for urban renewal.

All Around the Town :: All Around the Town

All Around the Town    Mary Higgins Clark started her writing career writing suspense stories and she hasn't changed very much since then.   All her books are very interesting to read and they will always keep your attention to the end.  Ã‚     All Around the Town was one of the stories written by Mary Higgins Clark.   This book was a suspenseful, interesting, intriguing book.   It held my interest until the end.   The plot was twisty and unpredictable which meant that I would never get bored.   The story takes place in Ridgewood, New Jersey.   It takes place from June 1974 to about September 1991.   This effects the rest of the story because this is the time period that the main character had her abduction and her multiple personalities started to form.     The main character in this story was Laurie Kenyon, a four year old girl in the beginning of the story who eventually grows up to be a twenty-one year old woman.   She has blond hair, green eyes and a fragile little body.   Sarah Kenyon is present throughout the story.   She is Laurie's sister and helps Laurie deal with all her problems as best she can.   Bic and Opal were Laurie's abductors.   Bic had a beard and his arms had a lot of curly hair.   He was a very domineering person towards Opal and Laurie.   Opal had long stringy hair and had a plain face.   She was passive and did whatever she was told.   They were con-artist who fooled everyone they met.   They were mean and didn't care about anybody else but themselves.   Justin Donnelly was the psychiatrist who helped Laurie with therapy and helped find the real person that was within her all along.     The story begins when Laurie Kenyon was abducted by Bic and Opal when she was four years old.   They abused her sexually and mentally when they had her for those two, long, tedious years.   When they were doing these things to her such as sexually abusing her she would place herself in a different state of mind, which over time began to be her altered personalities.   She had four main altered personalities which were Leona, the woman in Laurie, Debbie, the baby or woos, Kate, the strong leader of the bunch, and Lee, the little scared shy nine year old boy who helped, in the end, bring all the personalities together as one.

Some People Think Parents Should Read or Tell Stories to Children

Some people think parents should read or tell stories to children, while others think parents need not do that, as children can read books, watch TVs or movies by themselves. Discuss both views and give your opinion. Parenting is always a heated topic in our society. What is the best way for children to read and learn? Some people insist on the more traditional method by reading or telling stories to children rather than letting children learn by themselves through books, TV and internet . As far as I am concerned, two complementary methods are necessary to be applied to motivate children to read and learn.It is evident that reading or telling stories to their children is not only a way of learning but also a good approach to strenghten the tie between parents and children. It brings much more happiness to families and make family bond closer. Furthermore reading or telling stories to children is a a more entertaining method thought which children get more enjoyment and a metheod chi ldren perhaps prefer. Consequently children`s interest in reading and learning would easily be motivated. Many of us could remember the lovely moment when we were looking forward to listening for stories before we went to bed.However, independent learning is a vital capacity for â€Å"old† children and young adults. Therefore parents should encourage their children to read and learn by themselves, searching information through various sources such as books, internet as well as TV. For children would be growing up and be independent to face the complicated society one day. This ability would help them much no matter what they do in the future. To sum up, each method discussed above has its merit to be considered as a proper way which parents employ to foster their children a good reading and learning habit and ability.

Research Paper on Crohn’s Disease Essay

Crohn’s disease is an inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). It causes inflammation of the lining of your digestive tract, which can lead to abdominal pain, severe diarrhea and even malnutrition. Inflammation caused by Crohn’s disease can involve different areas of the digestive tract in different people. The inflammation caused by Crohn’s disease often spreads deep into the layers of affected bowel tissue. Like ulcerative colitis, another common IBD, Crohn’s disease can be both painful and debilitating, and sometimes may lead to life-threatening complications. Although it may involve any part of the digestive tract from the mouth to the anus, it most commonly affects the last part of the small intestine (ileum) and/or the large intestine (colon and rectum). Any age group may be affected, but the majority of patients are young adults between 16 and 40 years old. Crohn’s disease occurs most commonly in people living in northern climates. It affects men and women equally and appears to be common in some families. About 20 percent of people with Crohn’s disease have a relative, most often a brother or sister, and sometimes a parent or child, with some form of inflammatory bowel disease. Patients with Crohn’s disease can feel pain; the condition makes the intestines empty frequently, resulting in diarrhea. Crohn’s disease is not contagious, but it does have a slight genetic (inherited) tendency. An x-ray study of the small intestine may be used to diagnose Crohn’s disease. The exact cause of this disease is unknown. Crohn’s disease symptoms will often vary depending on which part of the gut is affected. When the wall of the affected part of the gut is inflamed, the patient may experience the following symptoms: Pain – the level of pain varies according to the patient, and where the inflammation is in the gut. Most commonly, pain will be felt at the lower-right side of the abdomen; because the majority of inflammations are locate in the ileum (lower end of the small intestine).Ulcers in the gut – ulcers are raw areas in the gut that may bleed. If they do bleed the patient may notice blood in his/her stools .Mouth ulcers – mouth ulcers are commonly experienced by people with Crohn’s disease. Diarrhea – can be mild to very severe. Sometimes there may be mucus, blood. The patient may want to go and find there is nothing to pass. Fatigue – patients with Crohn’s disease may  sometimes feel extremely tired. Fever is also possible during fatigue. Altered appetite – generally, people with Crohn’s disease have periods when their appetite is very low. Weight loss – this is common, especially when the patient experiences loss of appetite. Anemia – if the patient is losing blood there is a risk of anemia. Rectal bleeding and anal fissures – when the skin of the anus becomes cracked there will be anal fissures. These may become painful and can bleed. There is no â€Å"cure† for Crohn’s disease, but medical therapy with one or more drugs provides a means to treat early Crohn’s disease and relieve its symptoms. The most common drugs prescribed are corticosteroids, such as prednisone and methylprednisolone, and various anti-inflammatory agents. The main treatment for Crohn’s disease is medicine to stop the inflammation in the intestine and medicine to prevent flare-ups and keep the individual in remission. Treatment may include medications, surgery, nutrition supplementation, or a combination of these options; these are some of the medications used in the treatment: Anti-inflammation medications, Cortisone or steroids, Immune system suppressors, Biological therapies, Antibiotics, Anti-diarrheal medications and fluid replacements. Children with Crohn’s disease may need high-calorie liquid formulas, especially if their growth is being affected. The majority of Crohn’s disease patients will nee d surgery at some time. When medications no longer control symptoms the only solution sometimes is to operate. Surgery can relieve symptoms that did not respond to medication, or to correct complications, such as abscess, perforation, bleeding, and blockage. Removing part of the intestine can help, but it does not cure Crohn’s disease. Inflammation often returns to the area next to where the affected part of the gut was removed. Some Crohn’s disease patients may require more than one operation during their lives. Hypnotherapy is a healing approach that creates a state of deep relaxation and heightened concentration. A report published in 2000 indicates that hypnotherapy shows promise as a means of improving immune function and relieving symptoms in people with Crohn’s disease In a 2004 study, patients with mild to moderately active Crohn’s disease had a decrease in disease activity after receiving 10 sessions of acupuncture (a needle-based therapy long used to treat inflammatory bowel disease in traditional Chinese  medicine). In addition to taking medications an d making dietary changes, certain lifestyle changes may help those with Crohn’s disease. Living with the condition often means making changes such as quitting the use of tobacco products and reducing stress. People with Crohn’s disease may also benefit from receiving counseling or support. your diet to control your symptoms. You might need to: Limit dairy products, try low-fat foods Experiment with how much protein and fiber you eat avoid problem â€Å"gassy† foods and eat smaller and more frequent meals. Many people with Crohn’s are lactose intolerant. Luckily, there’s a great dairy alternative: almond milk, which is made from ground-up almonds and can be fortified to contain as much calcium as regular milk. Exercise helps people with Crohn’s disease, both in terms of maintaining health and reducing stress. Exercise is considered safe for people with Crohn’s disease, but anyone with a chronic illness should talk to their doctor before starting a new exercise or fitness regimen. It is especially important for people with Crohnâ⠂¬â„¢s disease to drink water before and during exercise to prevent dehydration. Avoid extreme changes in body temperature during exercise. Citations Wong, C. (2012, September 19). Natural Remedies for Crohn’s Disease. Alternative Medicine – Everything You Need to Know About Alternative Medicine. Retrieved January 14, 2013, from http://altmedicine.about.com/od/crohnsdisease/a/crohns_alttherapies.htm N.P. (2009, May 28). â€Å"What Is Crohn’s Disease? What Causes Crohn’s Disease?.† Medical News Today. Retrieved from http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/151620.php. Ehrlich, S. (2012, December 31). Crohn’s disease. University of Maryland Medical Center | Home. Retrieved January 15, 13, from http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/crohns-disease-000043.htm

The Quran Essays

The Quran Essays The Quran Paper The Quran Paper Quranic revelations are regarded by Muslims as the words of God, intended to correct any errors or differences in previous holy books such as the Old and New Testaments. The Quran specifically mentions that Muhammad was the messenger to the whole of mankind, and that he is the last messenger to be sent. The Quran is the final message that reiterates the basic religion God ordained for the Jews and the Christians, as well as the Muslims. Muslims also believe that the book was sent down to human kind in order to put everything into the correct perspective or position. The Quran was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad by God in Arabic. The Quran is regarded by Muslims as a book of signs not science although the Quran contains many scientific statements in various topics including embryology and the creation of the earth. The Qur’an teaches that everyone is equal in the sight of God regardless of their skin colour or their background. The Qur’an calls everyone to tawheed (oneness of God) and that there will be a time in which every human will be accountable for their action. Muslims believe that the Quran is different from all other books in ways that are impossible for any other book to be, such that similar texts cannot be written by humans. The Quran itself challenges any who disagree with its divine origin to produce a text of a miraculous nature. Scholars of Islam believe that its poetic form is unique and of a fashion that cannot be written by humans. There are 114 chapters in the Quran, which is written in the Arabic language. Out of the 114 chapters, 86 were revealed in the twelve years that the Prophet lived in Mecca after the revelation. The other 28 chapters were revealed in Medina. The longest chapter of the Quran is Surah Baqarah (The Cow) with 286 verses and the shortest is Surah Al-Kauthar (abundance) which has 3 verses. The Quran is sometimes divided into 30 roughly equal parts, known as ‘juz. These divisions make it easier for Muslims to read the Quran during the course of a month and many will read one juz each day, particularly during the month of Ramadan. Translations of the Quran exist in over 40 languages but Muslims are still taught to learn and recite it in Arabic, even if this is not their native language and they cannot converse in it. Translations are also considered by most Muslims as new versions of the book, rather than as translations in the conventional sense. In my opinion the Qur’an is a unique book due to the scientific statements which have been discovered recently using advanced technology. Beside that the Quran is also unique because of the structure and accuracy. One of the most remarkable things about the Quran is that it’s still the same book for the past 1400 years.

Image Processing and Enhancement Essay Example

Image Processing and Enhancement Essay Example Image Processing and Enhancement Essay Image Processing and Enhancement Essay Remote sensing (RS), also called earth observation, refers to obtaining information about objects or areas at the Earth? s surface without being in direct contact with the object or area. Humans accomplish this task with aid of eyes or by the sense of smell or hearing; so, remote sensing is day-today business for people.Remote sensing can be broadly defined as the collection and interpretation of information about an object, area, or event without being in physical contact with the object. Remote-sensing data play a growing role in studies of natural and semi natural environments, a role that stretches from a visual interpretation to sophisticated extraction of information by advanced image analysis and statistical algorithms. In their raw form, as received from imaging sensors mounted on satellite platforms, remotelysensed data generally contain flaws or deficiencies with respect to a particular application.To extract basic information from remotely-sensed data the flaws or deficiencies must remove or corrected. In this paper I will try to describes some important general means of image correction because it is difficult to decide what should be included under the heading of image correction, since the definition of what is, or is not, a deficiency in the data depends to a considerable extent on the use to which those data are to be put. So I will discuss the title like image Preprocessing, Digital image, image enhancement and other important titles related to Image correction and better image interpretation means.The other idea raised and discussed in this paper is the relationship between vegetation index and vegetation degradation by using remotely sensed data. 2. Function of image preprocessing and its importance for image Analysis The function of an image preprocessing is a means to applying some methods in order to correct image deficiencies and removal of flaws before using the images for other purposes. Mather and Koch (2011) stated that In their raw form, as received from imaging sensors mounted on satellite platforms, remotelys 1 a) before haze removal b) After haze removal 2 Figure 3 Haze Reduction 5 B) Sun angle correction According to Bakker and et al. (2011) stated that The position of the sun relative to the earth changes depending on time of the day and the day of the year. As a result, the image data of different seasons are acquired under different solar illumination. An absolute correction involves dividing the DN-values in the image data by the sine of the solar elevation angle. Landsat 7 ETM+ color infrared composites acquired with different sun angle. (A) The left image was acquired with a sun elevation of 37Â ° and right image. B) With a sun elevation of 42Â °. The difference in reflectance is clearly shown. (C) (B) The left image was corrected to meet the right image. Figure 4 Sun angle Correction 2. 2. Geometric Correction Geometric distortion is an error on image which occurred by one of the two possibilities either internally on the geometry of the sensor or externally the altitude of the sensor or the shape of the object. Supporting to this idea Kuznetsov and et al. (2012) describe that geometric distortion is an error on image, between the actual image coordinates and the ideal image coordinates.Geometric distortion is classified in to internal distortion resultin g from the geometry of the sensor and external distortion resulting from the altitude of the sensor or the shape of the object. 6 To correct such geometric distortion on the image we should use different geometric correction methods. Murayam and Dassanayake (2010) stated that geometric corrections include correcting for geometric distortions due to sensor-Earth geometry variations, and conversion of the data to real world coordinates (e. g. latitude and longitude) on the Earths surface.Conversion of the data to real world coordinates are carried by analyzing well distributed Ground Control Points (GCPs). This is done in two steps Geo-referencing: This involves the calculation of the appropriate transformation from image to terrain coordinates. Landsat 30m ETM+ Image Quickbird . 7m Natural Color Image Ground control points are identified between the two images in recognizable locations. These points should be static relative to temporal change. In this case road intersections are the best source of GCP’s. Features that move through time (i. e. horelines, etc. ) should be avoided if possible. Figure 5 Georeferencing Geocoding: This step involves resembling the image to obtain a new image in which all pixels are correctly positioned within the terrain coordinate system. Resampling is used to determine the digital values to place in the new pixel locations of the corrected output image. Figure 6 Geo coding 7 There are different techniques of resampling methods according Murayam and Dassanayake (2010) there is three techniques of resampling: 1. Nearest Neighborhood 2. Bi-linear interpolation 3. Cubic Convolution 1.Nearest Neighborhood According to Rees (2011) the nearest neighbor approach uses the value of the closest input pixel for the output pixel value. To determine the nearest neighbor, the algorithm uses the inverse of the transformation matrix to calculate the image file coordinates of the desired geographic coordinate. The pixel value occupying the c losest image file coordinate to the estimated coordinate will be used for the output pixel value in the geo-referenced image. This means that the nearest pixel value has more influence than apart pixel. Figure7.Nearest Neighborhood ADVANTAGES: Output values are the original input values. Other methods of resampling tend to average surrounding values. This may be an important consideration when discriminating between vegetation types or locating boundaries. Since original data are retained, this method is recommended before classification. Easy to compute and therefore fastest to use. DISADVANTAGES: Produces a choppy, stair-stepped effect. The image has a rough appearance relative to the original un-rectified data. Data values may be lost, while other values may be duplicated.Figure 1 shows an input file (orange) with a yellow output file superimposed. Input values closest to the center of each output cell are sent to the output file to the right. Notice that values 13 and 22 ar e lost while values 14 and 24 are duplicated. 8 2. Bi-linear interpolation The bilinear interpolation approach uses the weighted average of the nearest four pixels to the output pixel. Figure8. Bi-linear interpolation ADVANTAGES: Stair-step effect caused by the nearest neighbor approach is reduced. Image looks smooth. DISADVANTAGES: Alters original data and reduces contrast by averaging neighboring values together. Is computationally more expensive than nearest neighbor. 3. Cubic Convolution The cubic convolution approach uses the weighted average of the nearest sixteen pixels to the output pixel. The output is similar to bilinear interpolation, but the smoothing effect caused by the averaging of surrounding input pixel values is more dramatic. Figure9. Cubic Convolution ADVANTAGES: Stair-step effect caused by the nearest neighbor approach is reduced. Image looks smooth. DISADVANTAGES: Alters original data and reduces contrast by averaging neighboring values together. Is computa tionally more expensive than nearest neighbor or bilinear interpolation. In general image preprocessing is very essential step for better image analysis and interpretation because it corrects different types of image distortion. 9 Similar to this idea Murayam and Dassanayake (2010) stated that preprocessing includes data operation which normally precedes further manipulation and analysis of the image data to extract specific information. These operations aim to correct distorted or degraded image data to create a more faithful representation of the original scene. . Digital Image Formats and Its Arrangement According to Visual Resource Centre School of Humanities (2011) Digital images are electronic representations of images that are stored on a computer. The most important thing to understand about digital images is that you can? t see them and they don? t have any physical size until they are displayed on a screen or printed on paper. Until that point, they are just a collection o f numbers on the computer? s hard drive that describe the individual elements of a picture and how they are arranged.These elements are called pixel and they are arranged in a grid format with each pixel containing information about its color or intensity. Most of the time Band interleaved by line (BIL), band interleaved by pixel (BIP), and band sequential (BSQ) take as image digital format but this is not true rather they are schemes for storing the actual pixel values of an image in a file. Figure 10 Digital Data Format 10 According to ESRI resource center there are three common image digital formats these are Band interleaved by line (BIL), band interleaved by pixel BIP), and band sequential (BSQ) are three common methods of organizing image data for multiband images. BIL, BIP, and BSQ are not in themselves image formats but are schemes for storing the actual pixel values of an image in a file. While Visual Resource Centre School of Humanities (2010) there are four main file form ats for images: TIFF, JPEG, PNG and GIF. TIFF (Tagged Image File Format) Description: TIFF images are usually used for master image files. They contain image information in a lossless format (i. e. no image information is lost when images are saved) and so tend to be fairly large in size.They are therefore a good format for archiving images, but the large file size makes it an unsuitable format for use in web delivery or in presentation software, such as PowerPoint. Good for: master copies of images as all image information is retained when files are saved (lossless format). But: file sizes tend to be large due to lossless format, so TIFF files are not suitable for web delivery or inclusion in PowerPoint presentations. JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) Description: This is the main format that is used for photographic-type images on the web.It is a „lossy? format: images are compressed when saved and so image information is lost each time the image is edited and saved. T he benefit of compression is a reduction in file size, but the down side is that if too much compression is applied, visible artefacts such as highlighting around areas of high contrast may occur. The following images show the effects on quality and file size of differing levels of compression on the same JPEG image notice the blurring around the edges of the statue in the final image.Good for: web delivery of photographic images due to ability to compress images without too much loss of quality, therefore giving smaller file sizes than TIFF formats. But: too much compression can lead to a loss of quality so care needs to be taken with the quality setting used when saving images. GIF (Graphical Interchange Format) 11 Description: Another format encountered on the Internet, the GIF format is usually used for icons or graphics that contain a limited range of flat colors. It is a lossless format (no information is lost when saving), but as limited color capabilities and so is not suit able for displaying photographs. Good for: web delivery of icons and graphics due to small file size and lossless format. But: supports limited range of colors, so is only suitable for certain types of images. PNG (Portable network graphics) Description: PNG is a relatively new web graphics format, designed primarily to replace the GIF format for use on the Internet, and potentially rival TIFF in the long term as an archival format due to its better compression performance.Its main advantages over GIF are an improved lossless compression method and support for „true color. Although software support for the PNG format has been slow in developing, this is now beginning to change and it may become a more common format in the future. Good for: web delivery due to lossless compression technique resulting in files of small size but high quality. But: JPEG format gives better results for photographic images, and older web browsers and programs may not support the PNG format. 4. Purpo se of image enhancement and Method of Image Enhancement 4. 1.Purpose of Image Enhancement The purpose of image enhancement is forming good contrast to visualize images in a better way in order to understand or extract the intended information from the image. Similarly Vij and singh (2008) discussed Image enhancement is a mean as the improvement of an image appearance by increasing dominance of some features or by decreasing ambiguity between different regions of the image. Image enhancement processes consist of a collection of techniques that seek to improve the visual appearance of an image or to convert the image to a form better suited for analysis by a human or machine.The other writers Shankar Ray (2011) also describe, Image enhancement is the modification of image, by changing the pixel brightness values, to improve its visual impact. Image enhancement techniques are performed by deriving the new brightness value for a pixel either from its existing value or from the brightnes s values of a set of surrounding pixels. 12 4. 2. Method of Image Enhancement According to Department of US Army (2003) method of image enhancement classified in to four these are 1) Contrast enhancement 2) band ratio 3) spatial filtering and 4) principle components.The type of enhancement performed will depend on the appearance of the original scene and the goal of the interpretation. This indicate that performing all methods of enhancement for one image may not be necessary and selection of methods are vary depending on for what purpose the image is prepared or what type of information is extracted from the image. 1) Contrast enhancement-such types of enhancement mostly occur to increase the brightness of the image by changing the DN Values of the image. According to Al-amri (2011) one of the most important quality factors in satellite images comes from its contrast.Contrast enhancement is frequently referred to as one of the most important issues in image processing. Contrast str etching is an enhancement method performed on an image for locally adjusting each picture element value to improve the visualization of structures in both darkest and lightest portions of the image at the same time. Of course there are different techniques of image contrast enhancement like Liner contrast, histogram equalization, histogram stretch and the like but the mean idea is discussed on above even though there is slight difference performing each techniques.Before contrast enhancement Figure 11 Contrast Enhancement 13 After contrast enhancement 2) Band ratio-using contrast techniques help to enhance the images with related to brightness problems but this technique cannot solve problems like shadowiness and the like such image enhancement is takes place by using band ratio techniques. According to Department of US Army (2003) stated that Band ratio is commonly used band arithmetic method in which one spectral band is proportional with another spectral band.This simple method r educes the effect of shadowing caused by topography, highlights particular image elements, and accentuates temporal differences. 3) Spatial filtering –this types of enhancement is very important to avoid over exaggerated details for specific place in the image. Murayam and Dassanayake (2010) describe spatial filtering as spatial filter is designed to emphasize larger, homogeneous areas of similar tone and reduce the smaller detail in an image, this serve to smooth the appearance of an image. Low pass filters are very useful for reducing random noise.It is occasionally advantageous to reduce the detail and exaggerated particular features in an image 4) Principal components- According to Department of US Army (2003) the principal component analysis (PCA) is a technique that transform the pixel brightness values. These transformations compress the data by drawing out maximum covariance and remove correlated elements. The other writer Rees (2001) also stated that the principal co mponents of a multiband image are the set of linear combination of the bands that are both independent of and also uncorrelated with, one another. . Purpose of image Transformation and Method of Image Transformation 5. 1. Purpose of image Transformation Image transformation is a means to re-express an image in a different manner which means it gives a chance to Cooke in good way. According to UNEP (2005) The Term: Transform means arithmetic operator It is all arithmetic operations that allow the generation of a new composite image from 1 or 2 or more bands of a multi-spectral, multi-temporal, multi-frequencies (wavelengths), multi-polarization, multi-incidence angle images.The resulting image may have properties which makes it suitable to particular purpose than the original. 14 1) New Information extraction from the exited data like Change detection, vegetation info, geological info 2. Data dimensionality reduction storage efficiency processing efficiency reduce the # of bands and reduce time 3. Produce more physically relevant spectral feature space Similarly Mather and Koch (2011) discussed an image transform is an operation that reexpresses in a different, and possibly more meaningful, form all or part of the information content of a multispectral or grey scale image.From the above idea we can understand that by applying image transformation with different transformation techniques we can extract new information with best visualization and minimum storage. 5. 2. Method of Image Transformation Different writers classified method of image transformation differently because of their purpose study for this paper I choose UNEP (2005) Method of image transformation. According to UNEP(2005) Method Image transformation can be classified into 6 these are 1. Simple Arithmetic Operations 2. Empirically-Based Image Transformation 3.Principal Component Analysis 4. Multiple Discriminant Analysis 5. Hue, Saturation and Intensity (HIS) 6. Fourier Transformation 1. Simple Arithmetic Operations Applying one of arithmetic operation among Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication, and Division to perform simple transformation. They performed on 2 or more co-registered images of the same geographical area. The images could be separate spectral bands from single MSS or TM data set or they may be individual band s from data sets that have been imaged at different dates. 1. Image Addition If multiple images of a given region are available for approximately the same date and if part of one of the images has some noise (spectral problem, haze, fog, cloud), then that part can be compensated from the other images available. 15 1. 2 Image Subtraction: To assess the degree of change in an area, two dates of coo-registered images can be used with subtraction operation. October 1988 Figure 12. Change Detection 1. 3 Image Multiplication: May 1992 If the analyst is interested in a part of an image, then extracting that area can be done by multiplying the area by 1 and t he rest by 0.This applied only when the boundary of the area of interest is irregular. 1. 4 Image Division: Image Ratio: Dividing the pixels in one image by the corresponding pixels in a second image. Most commonly used transformation. It is very important transformation techniques because ? ? Certain aspect of the shape of spectral reflectance curves of the different earth surface cover types can be brought out by ratio. Undesirable effects on the recorded images such as the effect of variable illumination resulting from variation in topography can be reduced by ratio. . Empirically-Based Image Transformation Experience with Landsat MSS data for agriculture areas and with the difficulties encountered in the use of ratio transformed and Principal Component, led to the development of Image Transformation that was based on the OBSERVATIONS: 16 2. 1 Perpendicular Vegetation Index PVI A plot of reflectance measured in the visible red band against reflectance in the Near IR for a partly vegetated area will results in a plot like and use soil line for calculating vegetation distance from the line two-dimension space. . 2 Tasseled Cap Transformation PVI considers spectral variation in two of the 4 Landsat MSS bands and use distance from a soil line in the two-dimension space defined by these two MSS bands a a measure of biomass of green leaf area. 3. Principal Component Analysis PCA Adjacent bands in Multi-spectral Scanner remotely sensed data (images) are generally correlated. Multi-band visible/NIR images of vegetated areas show negative correlation between NIR and visible red bands, and positive correlation among the visible bands Green and Red.This is because of the spectral characteristics of vegetation are such that as vigor or greenness of the vegetation increase the red reflectance diminishes and NIR increases. The presence of correlation among the bands of the optical reflected MSS images implies that there is REDUNDENCY in the data. This means that some inf ormation is being repeated. It is the repetition of the information between bands that is reflected in the correlation. Principal component analysis helps to remove such redundancy through compress the data by drawing out maximum covariance and remove correlated elements. 4.Multiple Discriminant Analysis Image transformation using linear function called discriminant function. It represents the coordinate axes in the dimensional space that defined by the spectral bands which making up the data. As in PCA the relationship between the spectral bands and the discriminant functions axis derived and the coordinates of the individual pixel vector computed in terms of discriminant function. A simple example: if you have two groups of land with special reflectance that can be discriminated on the basis of the measurement in the dimensional space or in the coordinate axis.Some scientist thinks that this transformation made for special assignment. But despite of that it is found very useful it those special cases where you cannot find solution for them unless using this transformation. 5. Hue, Saturation and Intensity (HIS) Hue: angular variable of the direction of colors Saturation: lightness of the color (toward white) 0-255 scale the amount of white in the color Intensity: color strength 17 I = R+G+B H= (G – B)/I 3B S= (I – 3B)/ I 6. Fourier Transformation All five transformations discussed, they were using multidimensional space (multi-band) of remotely sensed data.Fourier Transformation using single band. The main idea of this transformation is that it uses the gray scale value, which forming a single image or single band, can be viewed as 3-D surface. The raw and column (X,Y) or spatial coordinates defining two axis (X,Y) and the gray scale 0255 value at each pixel giving the 3rd dimension. Therefore, the resulting image or product will show the frequency of certain feature all around the image. So it is a kind of histogram of the image in 3-D. 6. Ve getation index and relation with vegetation degradation 6. What is Vegetation Index? According to Jackson and huete (1991) Vegetation index is calculating of spectral band of data by combining two or more spectral bands of data. Vegetation indices are formed from combinations of several spectral values that are mathematically recombined in such a way as to yield a single value indicating the amount or vigor of vegetation within a pixel . Campbell, (1996) cited in Freitas and et. al (2005). 6. 2 Vegetation index and degradation –the best method of vegetation index is NDVI which is a normalized vegetation index .It a good means to assess the amount of greenness an area in th inverse NDVI indicates the level of degradation of an area. For example Take Bahirdar image in 1990 winter season and calculate the NDVI value and get a result of 0. 7 and after 10 years in2000 take another image of the same season and calculate the NDVI value and get a result of 0. 2. These indicates that in 1990 Bahirdar was covered by green vegetation while the 2000 image show that most of the areas covered by vegetation is degraded and covered by rocks.If the NDVI value approaches to1 the area has good vegetation cover, if the NDVI value approaches to 0 the area has less vegetation which means the area is covered by rocks and if the NDVI value is negative the area has no vegetation rather the area is covered by snow. 18 7 Digital image classification 7. 1 What is Digital Image