International winter school in image analysis and visual AI held at Mid Sweden University

On February 18–20, the EMJM in Imaging Winter School was held at Mid Sweden University's campus in Sundsvall. The winter school is part of the international master's program EMJM in Imaging and is conducted in collaboration with Politecnico di Milano and Tampere University. The program brings together students, researchers, and international experts in image analysis, signal processing, and artificial intelligence.

During three intensive days, participants took part in lectures, workshops, and practical sessions covering current research areas. Topics covered included generative AI in research, image and video quality, anomaly detection in images, signal modeling, and intellectual property rights. The aim was to provide students with both theoretical knowledge and practical tools that can support their degree projects and future careers.

- I really enjoyed all the lectures and workshops, but what made the biggest impression was meeting the lecturers, my classmates, and everyone who supported the program. It was really the people who made these days so meaningful and memorable, says Rodrigo Luna, master's student from the Image Modelling and Data‑intensive Imaging track, currently studying at Tampere University.

The winter school was attended by several internationally recognized researchers, including Professor Thrasos N. Pappas from Northwestern University, Professor Alessandro Foi from Tampere University, Associate Professor Giacomo Boracchi from Politecnico di Milano and Nicola Soloperto who is working on the business side of the Technology Transfer Office at Politecnico di Milano.

Researchers from Mid Sweden University also participated, including Professor Mårten Sjöström, researcher Roger Olsson and Senior Lecturer Emin Zerman, who gave lectures on oral scientific presentation, use of generative AI for research and development, image and video quality assessment and how user studies are conducted to evaluate visual experiences.

- This winter school was organized to complement the comprehensive education on imaging systems and to provide the students with more insight and focused knowledge on the topics that are closer to our contemporary research. It was great to see the students’ enthusiasm and curiosity to learn more during this winter school, which was evident from their interactions with the speakers, says Emin Zerman, the local program manager for the EMJM in Imaging program at Mid Sweden University.

In addition to the academic program, participants were offered social activities, such as cross-country skiing and a joint dinner, providing opportunities for networking and exchanging experiences between students and researchers from different countries.

The winter school strengthened Mid Sweden University's international collaboration by inviting researchers and other master students from Mid Sweden University and contributed to creating a dynamic research environment in image analysis and visual technology.