2009 November » Reflections by Susie Wee

In Remembrance of Professor William F. Schreiber

Nov 212009

Professor William F. Schreiber was my Ph.D. thesis advisor. He passed away in October 2009 at the age of 84. This article in the Boston Globe describes a bit about his life. His remembrance ceremony was held at the MIT Faculty Club on November 21, 2009. The room was packed with people who came to celebrate his life. His family, friends, colleagues, and former students attended, many of us flying in from across the country.

I have the honor of being Professor Schreiber’s last Ph.D. student. I was invited to be one of the speakers at his remembrance. These are the words that I shared in memory of Professor Schreiber. Please feel free to share your Schreiber-isms and memories of Professor Schreiber below.

From cameraman to camerawoman in NIR imaging research

Career tips, Technology No Responses »

Nov 142009

In the world of image processing research, it is important to have standard test images so people can compare their results. The cameraman image is a test image that has been used for decades. It can be found in many image processing textbooks and homework problems.

The Cameraman image is widely used as a test image for image processing research.

Imaging and photography has come quite a long ways since then. Just for fun, here are a couple pictures I took during my trip to Cairo Egypt for ICIP 2009 and a brief introduction to some research that Professor Sabine Süsstrunk presented on Near-Infrared Imaging to improve digital photography in the years to come.

Pyramids and the Sphynx: People pictures

Food and Travel No Responses »

Nov 122009

Here are some people pictures we took by the Pyramids and the Sphynx during my trip to Egypt in Nov 2009.

The first picture is the Step Pyramid in a town called Sakkara which has 16 pyramids. It turns out that there are many different types of pyramids, and it took some experimentation to find the shape that worked best. I’ll post more on that later.

Riding smiling camels at night

Food and Travel No Responses »

Nov 102009

I spent some time with the camels in the Egyptian desert at night, with the beautifully lit Pyramids of Giza in the distance. I’m sharing a few pictures that we took. I don’t know much about camels, but this seemed like a particularly happy crew.

The first picture has our calm, cool, and collected camel. Notice his elegant stature, which is accentuated by the blue glow of the pyramid in the distance.

Camels relaxing in the desert with the pyramids glowing in the distance.

The Pyramids of Giza at Night

Food and Travel 1 Response »

Nov 102009

I had the opportunity to be in Cairo, Egypt for ICIP 2009. The banquet dinner was held in a tent in the desert at a spot where we could see the Pyramids of Giza at night. While many people have seen pictures of the pyramids during the day, fewer people have seen pictures of the pyramids at night. I am sharing a couple night pictures I took of the pyramids. It is quite humbling to reflect on the fact that these pyramids are about 4500 years old! Enjoy!