EMS Users and MSA Policy on Digital Image Manipulation

Ethical Digital Imaging Policy

• The MSA policy on Digital Image Manipulation advises EMS users to store original, uncompressed image files on archival media (e.g., CD-R) without any image manipulation or processing operations.
• All parameters of image production and acquisition, as well as subsequent processing steps, must be documented and reported to ensure reproducibility.

Acceptable Image Operations

• Acceptable, non-reportable imaging operations include gamma correction, histogram stretching, and brightness and contrast adjustments.
• Other operations (e.g., Unsharp-Masking, Gaussian Blur) must be directly identified by the author as part of the experimental methodology.

Guidelines for Scientific Digital Image Acquisition and Manipulation

• Scientific digital images are data that can be compromised by inappropriate manipulations.
• Images are data arranged spatially in an XY matrix (or grid) and each individual element (pixel) has a numerical value that represents a grayscale or RGB intensity value.
• The data acquisition system and sensor are subject to limitations and aberrations imposed by physics and instrument design.
• The user is responsible for understanding the limitations of the particular instrument.

Best Practices

• Manipulation of digital images should always be done on a copy of the unprocessed image data file.
• The original raw data file is the standard to which the final image can and should be compared.

This quiz focuses on the importance of following the MSA Policy on Digital Image Manipulation for EMS Users. It covers key guidelines such as storing original image files on archival media, documenting parameters of production and acquisition, and ensuring reproducibility of processing steps.