Open AccessON THE PRECISION OF THE ISOTROPIC CAVALIERI DESIGN
Author(s) -
Javier GonzálezVilla,
Marcos Cruz,
Luis M. CruzOrive
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
image analysis and stereology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.237
H-Index - 27
eISSN - 1854-5165
pISSN - 1580-3139
DOI - 10.5566/ias.1947
Subject(s) - estimator , variance (accounting) , isotropy , volume (thermodynamics) , mathematics , surface (topology) , constant (computer programming) , perpendicular , monte carlo method , object (grammar) , set (abstract data type) , algorithm , bias of an estimator , statistics , geometry , minimum variance unbiased estimator , computer science , artificial intelligence , physics , accounting , quantum mechanics , business , programming language
The isotropic Cavalieri design is based on a isotropically oriented set of parallel systematic sections a constant distance apart. Its advantage over the ordinary Cavalieri design is twofold - first, besides volume it allows the unbiased estimation of surface area, and second, the error variance predictor for the volume estimator is much simpler, involving only the surface area of the object, and the distance between sections. In an earlier paper, the two hemispheres of a rat brain were arranged perpendicular to each other before sectioning, aiming at reducing the error variance with respect to other arrangements (such as the aligned one) by exploiting an intuitively plausible antithetic effect. Because the total surface area of the objects is unchanged under any arrangements, however, the error variance predictor for the volume estimator does not depend on object shape, which looks intriguing. Using reconstructions of the mentioned hemispheres, we dilucidate the aparent paradox by means of automatic Monte Carlo replications of the relevant volume estimates under the antithetic and the aligned arrangements.