Eduardo A. Favret

Quantifying use-wear traces through RIMAPS and Variogram analyses

The aim of this paper is to present the results obtained through the application of two imaging methods named rotated image with maximum average power spectrum (RIMAPS) and Variograms to mathematically characterize distinct patterns of worked materials on used edges of lithic artifacts. Both analytical procedures were performed on digitized images taken with an electronic microscope, allowing for the quantitative description of a given surface and revealing its topographic patterns. The preliminary research conducted on a sample of experimental lithic artifacts used to process different materials has shown promising results to the extent that fingerprints of different work processes (hide, bone, and wood-working) can be drawn.

RIMAPS detection of incipient damage on metallic surfaces

A new imaging technique, rotated image with maximum average power spectrum (RIMAPS), that combines digitized image rotation and Fourier transformation is used not only to obtain the main directions of pattern alignment and the characteristics of surface topography, but also for the detection of incipient damage on metallic surfaces. Different grains of aluminum are studied to show the robustness of this technique that is able to detect different surfaces at the early stages of etching by different reagents. The results are compared with those obtained following standard metallographic procedures that require preparation of properly polished surfaces to obtain good-quality images as the basis for an adequate characterization. RIMAPS turns out to be a quick, simple, and useful tool both to detect incipient damage on metallic surfaces and to identify different surfaces.

Wheat Leaf Rust Fungus: RIMAPS Analysis to Detect Germ-tube Orientation Pattern

Fil: Setten, Lorena Maria. Instituto Nacional de Tecnologia Agropecuaria. Centro de Investigacion en Ciencias Veterinarias y Agronomicas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas; Argentina

First RIMAPS Description of Patterns of Root Development Displayed in Hydroponics

Rotated Image with Maximum Average Power Spectrum (RIMAPS) is a new image characterization technique that was recently described as a valuable tool for the analysis and characterization of technical and biological surfaces. The objective of this work was to ascertain whether RIMAPS may be used to obtain a quantitative description of patterns of development displayed by roots in hydroponics. Visual observations on roots of wild‐type barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) grown in hydroponics by the sandwich method showed, before their submergence, an erratic growth with windings and turnings, which after several days created a tangle of roots above the water surface. This intricate morphology is difficult to study without disturbing the root development. Hence, RIMAPS is introduced as an original method for the quantitative description of root axes distribution in a nondestructive way. Accordingly, patterns of root development were recorded by a digital camera. The Gaussian fitting of RIMAPS spectra resultant from digital images of roots were used to analyze, quantify, and compare differences in the pattern of root development observed between the wild type and a barley root mutant. Additionally, a parameter Γ was introduced that is obtained from the Gaussian curve and quantifies differences in angles displayed by root axes during their development with regard to the axial direction.