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BioEncoder : A metric learning toolkit for comparative organismal biology

Lürig, Moritz D LU ; Di Martino, Emanuela and Porto, Arthur (2024) In Ecology Letters 27(8).
Abstract

In the realm of biological image analysis, deep learning (DL) has become a core toolkit, for example for segmentation and classification. However, conventional DL methods are challenged by large biodiversity datasets characterized by unbalanced classes and hard-to-distinguish phenotypic differences between them. Here we present BioEncoder, a user-friendly toolkit for metric learning, which overcomes these challenges by focussing on learning relationships between individual data points rather than on the separability of classes. BioEncoder is released as a Python package, created for ease of use and flexibility across diverse datasets. It features taxon-agnostic data loaders, custom augmentation options, and simple hyperparameter... (More)

In the realm of biological image analysis, deep learning (DL) has become a core toolkit, for example for segmentation and classification. However, conventional DL methods are challenged by large biodiversity datasets characterized by unbalanced classes and hard-to-distinguish phenotypic differences between them. Here we present BioEncoder, a user-friendly toolkit for metric learning, which overcomes these challenges by focussing on learning relationships between individual data points rather than on the separability of classes. BioEncoder is released as a Python package, created for ease of use and flexibility across diverse datasets. It features taxon-agnostic data loaders, custom augmentation options, and simple hyperparameter adjustments through text-based configuration files. The toolkit's significance lies in its potential to unlock new research avenues in biological image analysis while democratizing access to advanced deep metric learning techniques. BioEncoder focuses on the urgent need for toolkits bridging the gap between complex DL pipelines and practical applications in biological research.

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Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Deep Learning, Software, Animals, Image Processing, Computer-Assisted/methods, Biodiversity
in
Ecology Letters
volume
27
issue
8
article number
e14495
publisher
Wiley-Blackwell
external identifiers
  • scopus:85201098433
  • pmid:39136114
ISSN
1461-023X
DOI
10.1111/ele.14495
language
English
LU publication?
yes
additional info
© 2024 The Author(s). Ecology Letters published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
id
8fbbdeea-9919-4967-a905-e6582cad4006
date added to LUP
2024-08-24 12:45:45
date last changed
2024-09-08 05:13:51
@article{8fbbdeea-9919-4967-a905-e6582cad4006,
  abstract     = {{<p>In the realm of biological image analysis, deep learning (DL) has become a core toolkit, for example for segmentation and classification. However, conventional DL methods are challenged by large biodiversity datasets characterized by unbalanced classes and hard-to-distinguish phenotypic differences between them. Here we present BioEncoder, a user-friendly toolkit for metric learning, which overcomes these challenges by focussing on learning relationships between individual data points rather than on the separability of classes. BioEncoder is released as a Python package, created for ease of use and flexibility across diverse datasets. It features taxon-agnostic data loaders, custom augmentation options, and simple hyperparameter adjustments through text-based configuration files. The toolkit's significance lies in its potential to unlock new research avenues in biological image analysis while democratizing access to advanced deep metric learning techniques. BioEncoder focuses on the urgent need for toolkits bridging the gap between complex DL pipelines and practical applications in biological research.</p>}},
  author       = {{Lürig, Moritz D and Di Martino, Emanuela and Porto, Arthur}},
  issn         = {{1461-023X}},
  keywords     = {{Deep Learning; Software; Animals; Image Processing, Computer-Assisted/methods; Biodiversity}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{8}},
  publisher    = {{Wiley-Blackwell}},
  series       = {{Ecology Letters}},
  title        = {{BioEncoder : A metric learning toolkit for comparative organismal biology}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/ele.14495}},
  doi          = {{10.1111/ele.14495}},
  volume       = {{27}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}