New HITs on identifying clouds and cloud shadows in satellite images

Discussion in 'Do My HIT!' started by vtcloudfinder, Nov 15, 2013.

  1. Kryptexx

    Kryptexx Active Member

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    The exit survey never loaded for me, but I did complete the HIT.

    PM me if you would like my worker ID for the HIT, but basically, I came across an image with no clouds in it, and I think it was just a little bit too time consuming to hit every button for No Clouds Anywhere. Should be an option if the whole image is cloud free.

    Also, the training module never showed if those black splotches are shadows or not.
     
  2. vtcloudfinder

    vtcloudfinder Member

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    Hi there,

    Thank you for your suggestions!

    You may need to click on the shield symbol in the address bar and “allow unsafe script to load”, and then the content will be displayed.

    We will definitely work on both the training module and interface to make the HIT better. As always, please pay attention to our additional HITs in 2014!

    Best,
    The VT Cloud Interpretation Group
     
  3. bobbie01

    bobbie01 User

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    I left some suggestions in the comments section. There has to be a way to make it so we can select several or all of the same "boxes". If you can change the interface or raise the pay it would make it a much better HIT, imo.
     
  4. vtcloudfinder

    vtcloudfinder Member

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    Dear Turkers,

    The "Virginia Tech Cloud Interpretation Group" has posted another set of HITs for finding clouds and cloud shadows in satellite images.
    The wage is $1.50 per completed HIT.

    As before, no pre-qualifications are needed, every honest effort will be rewarded with swift payment, and only one HIT can be completed by a given worker.
    If you already participated in the first or second round of this effort (Nov.15-Dec.2, Dec.2-Dec.13, 2013), please be patient and wait until early 2014 for more HITs of this kind.
    For further details regarding the contents of this HIT please see our original BLOG at http://mturkforum.com/showthread.php?11008-New-HITs-on-identifying-clouds-and-cloud-shadows-in-satellite-images

    We are looking forward to working with you.

    Best,
    The Virginia Tech Cloud Interpretation Group
     
  5. balavelu

    balavelu Active Member

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    Hello

    In satellite image there is block splotches..can i consider this block splotches as cloud or shadow?

    Otherwise can i select block splotches as completely cloud free.
     
  6. vtcloudfinder

    vtcloudfinder Member

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    Hi there,

    If you mean black patches by block splotches, they could be either a shadow or wet area in the color-ir display of the image or they could be a cloud in the thermal display of the image. It could go either way. Cloud shadows should have a corresponding cloud in the nearby area.

    Thanks,
    The VT Cloud Interpretation Group
     
  7. Msstma

    Msstma Member

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    Thank you! Will look for this one!
     
  8. vtcloudfinder

    vtcloudfinder Member

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    New HITs on identifying clouds on satellite images are available!

    Dear AMT community,

    We are back! A set of new HITs under the heading "Identify clouds on satellite images" will be posted tomorrow morning.

    Each HIT includes the following tasks:

    1. Read & sign a brief consent form (university policy...)
    2. Short set of instructions (description of task and graphical interface)
    3. Three satellite images with varying cloud patterns - go chase clouds!
    4. A short exit survey.

    Compensation will be $1.00. Everyone is welcomed to complete the HIT no matter if you participated in last year. For research purpose, only one HIT can be completed per worker during this phase.

    The user interface for our cloud interpretation HITs has been significantly revamped with the intention of making it a much faster process to identify clouds and their shadows. Here are the key improvements:

    1. It is no longer necessary to mark tiles not impacted by clouds or shadows. You need only mark the ones with clouds in them. It is thus not necessary to “visit” each tile in the scene.
    2. There are now two input modes, toggled with a dropdown immediately below the map:
      1. Single click mode. Click once on a tile to mark it as cloud impacted, or click on a previously marked tile to deselect it. The standard map navigation actions (dragging, panning, swiping) are available in this mode.
      2. Continuous selection mode. Click and drag to draw a freehand line across the grid of tiles. When you release the mouse or remove your finger from the touch screen the app will select all the tiles that your line intersects. This is an extremely fast way to select multiple adjacent tiles.

    In our own testing we found that these user interface changes increased the speed of HIT completion by an order of magnitude. We hope that you will experience similar performance gains. It is our intention to design a mapping framework that will enable the mTurk community to earn a fair wage by providing insightful image interpretations that create value for the scientific community that uses this data. It is not in your interest, or ours, for workers to fight the interface to perform an interpretation. Our user interface last year was not at the same level of sophistication as the one we’re launching now, and your feedback on the amount of time spent working a HIT directed us to focus more resources on usability improvement in this area. We hope you’ll enjoy using our new mapping interface.

    PLEASE NOTE: HITs from us may not initially render in your browser due to “mixed content” blocking. Please enable mixed content to see the HIT.

    Please join us!

    With kind regards,
    The VT Cloud Interpretation Group
     
  9. vkn2007

    vkn2007 User

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    Thanks, completed the HIT.
     
  10. kcott84

    kcott84 User

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    Ohhhhhhhhhhh, this sounds fun! I love sky and weather-related stufff.... hmm maybe because my head is always in the clouds..? (Just kidding!) Hope to see some soon!
     
  11. vtcloudfinder

    vtcloudfinder Member

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    New HITs on identifying clouds on satellite images are available!

    Dear AMT community,

    We are excited to announce the new round of our "Virginia Tech cloud finder" project. They will be online tomorrow (Monday) morning! There are several innovations, based on your feedback and our analysis of results from previous rounds.

    SEPARATE QUALIFICATION

    We now have de-linked the training module from the actual cloud interpretation task. The training module, with more tips and examples than before, is now posted as a separate qualification ("Landsat 8 Cloud Interpretation Qualification"). It is followed by a short test, asking you to decide if a given satellite image contains clouds or cloud shadow, or not. If you pass this test (score of 80% or more - and that shouldn't be too tricky if you read through the training manual), you are authorized to complete our HITs now and in the future!

    Everyone is welcomed to take this qualification no matter if you participated in our cloud finder project before. The entire qualification should take no more than 10-15 minutes. It won't expire, at least not for a while. There are no limitations or time delays in re-taking the qualification if you need to boost your test score.

    De-coupling the training module into a separate qualification will provide better training (we hope!), and will considerably shorten the completion time for the actual HITs.

    ACCELERATED CLOUDFINDER INTERFACE

    Our new set of HITs will feature the same accelerated cloudfinder interface as our last round, see our last announcement. Simply click on impacted cells or select multiple cells with your mouse.

    Each HIT includes the following tasks:
    1. Read & sign a brief consent form (university policy...)
    2. Three satellite images with varying cloud patterns - go chase clouds!
    3. A short exit survey (waived if you have already taken it in a previous round)

    As in previous rounds, there will only be one HIT available per worker. If you change your mind after returning the HIT and want to accept another one, please contact us.

    In the next round we will "open the gates" with many more images and no limitation on the number of HITs than can be completed by a single worker. So you might as well get your "qual" in this round and earn a dollar (compensation will remain at $1).

    As in the past, we will honor every reasonable effort with payment.

    We are looking forward to working with all of – please join us or continue to participate for this important research effort.

    With kind regards,
    The VT Cloud Interpretation Group
     
  12. balavelu

    balavelu Active Member

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    Hi
    I can't find any hits?
     
  13. vtcloudfinder

    vtcloudfinder Member

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    The HITs and qualification are online now! Come and join us!:eek:
     
  14. Flora

    Flora Admin
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    Title: Identify clouds on satellite images
    Requester: Virginia Tech Cloud Interpretation Group [A1Q6SJTRAZEIE6] (TO)
    TO Ratings:
    [​IMG]
    3.40 Communicativity
    3.07 Generosity
    4.60 Fairness
    4.50 Promptness
    Number of Reviews: 14
    (Submit a new TO rating for this requester)

    Description: You will identify clouds and cloud shadows in different satellite images. You can do this by simply clicking on a tile or selecting multiple tiles that show clouds, cloud shadows, or both. This will help us identify images that are suitable for research on forest health and forest change. Please note: (1) We have published 6 variations of this HIT, but we need unique responses for this phase of our study, so you can only complete one HIT from this group. (2) You will complete this HIT by clicking a large green button at the conclusion of an exit survey. Be sure to scroll all the way to the bottom of the last screen of the HIT if this button is not initially visible. If you enjoy this type of work, we will be releasing more HITs in upcoming rounds of research.
    Time: 60 minutes
    Hits Available: 6
    Reward: $1.00
    Qualifications: Landsat 8 Cloud Interpretation Qualification is not less than 80
     
  15. twirdman

    twirdman User

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    Hello I was wondering if you knew approximately how many hits you planned on putting up after this initial batch to qual people and would it be steady work over a period of time or would it all be dropped at once? Thank you and have a nice day.
     
  16. vtcloudfinder

    vtcloudfinder Member

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    Thank you for your interests in our HITs. We are planing to release next batch in bulk soon, and the ultimate goal is to have enough qualified workers and create a stable platform to do the cloud interpretation work. :eek:
     
  17. vtcloudfinder

    vtcloudfinder Member

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    New HITs on identifying clouds on satellite images are available!

    Dear AMT community,

    We are excited to announce the new round of our "Virginia Tech cloud finder" project. The new HITs will be online tomorrow (Friday) morning! There are several innovations, based on your feedback and our analysis of results from previous rounds.

    MORE HITS FOR EACH WORKER

    There is no limitation on the number of HITs that can be completed by a single qualified worker this round. Every qualified worker is welcomed to finish all available HITs (currently 12). Please choose the "automatically accept the next HIT" option as for the first time if you would like to participate in all cloud interpretation tasks. The compensation is $0.50/HIT. As in the past, we will honor every reasonable effort with payment.

    TRAINING MODULE AND QUALIFICATION

    As in the last round, the training module is posted as a separate qualification ("Landsat 8 Cloud Interpretation Qualification"). It is followed by a short test, asking you to decide if a given satellite image contains clouds or cloud shadow, or not. If you pass this test (score of 80% or more), you are authorized to complete our HITs now and in the future!

    The entire qualification should take no more than 10-15 minutes. It won't expire, at least not for a while. There are no limitations or time delays in re-taking the qualification if you need to boost your test score. If you have passed the qualification in last year's round, you do NOT need to go through the training module again. You should be cleared to immediately start working on HITs.

    The training module now can be reviewed anytime during the cloud interpretation step.

    ACCELERATED CLOUDFINDER INTERFACE

    Our new set of HITs will feature the same accelerated cloudfinder interface as our last round. Simply click on impacted cells or select multiple cells with your mouse.

    Each HIT includes the following tasks:
    1. Read & sign a brief consent form (university policy...)
    2. One satellite images with cloud patterns - go chase clouds!
    3. Training module can be reviewed anytime
    4. A short exit survey (waived if you have already taken it in a previous round)
    We are looking forward to working with all of you– please join us or continue to participate for this important research effort.

    With kind regards,
    The VT Cloud Interpretation Group
     

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