Wolfram Mathematica 7 Features Next-Generation Image Processing and Analysis

November 18, 2008--Wolfram Research today announced that an innovative, advanced image processing system has been added as a core part of its new Mathematica 7 product.

The image processing environment of Mathematica 7 was designed from the ground up to become the system of choice for imaging research and applications in science, engineering, medicine, and education. Industrial-strength, high-performance functions for image composition, transformation, enhancement, and segmentation combine with the existing Mathematica infrastructure of high-level language, automated interface construction, interactive notebook documents, and computational power to make a uniquely versatile image processing solution.

"With its ease of use and seamless integration, Mathematica 7 reaches far beyond legacy scripting languages, old-school toolboxes, and of course plain C/C++ libraries. What we have built is the most modern and elegant image processing environment in existence," says Peter Overmann, Director of Software Technology at Wolfram Research. "Working with a team of industrial and academic experts, we set out to define the next generation of digital image processing software. The usability, interactivity, and performance offered by Mathematica 7 are simply amazing."

Mathematica 7 features efficient implementations of classical image processing methods, high-level abstraction from underlying data types, extensible functions that leverage Mathematica's proven data processing capabilities, and integration of vector and raster graphics, as well as import and export converters for all common file formats used in medical imaging, satellite imaging and remote sensing, astronomy, and computer graphics.

"Built around a versatile Image object with automated display, the new image processing package forms a powerful springboard for development of new algorithms," says Richard Scott, Research Director at OralCDx Laboratories. "The natural variability of image data requires rapid test and visualization of results, integrated with sophisticated and accessible libraries that only the unique breadth of Mathematica can provide."

"This is certainly the only image processing system where you can simply drag and drop image files into some program code, run complex computations with one keystroke, and share your results in the form of great-looking notebooks," says Overmann.

Mathematica 7 also offers, for the first time, a built-in parallel computation framework that makes it easy to process large numbers of images simultaneously on personal computers as well as on high-performance clusters.

Availability
Mathematica 7 is available for Windows 2000/XP/Vista, Mac OS X, Linux x86, Solaris UltraSPARC/x86, and compatible systems. More product details are available on the Mathematica website.