People recognize objects effortlessly. When applying to graduate school in 1983 I asked how it was that people could instantly recognize a squirrel on a log and how we might build machines capable of the same. Even just ten years ago, this task seemed out of reach. Now the good news, the last ten years has seen incredible progress on general object recognition. As to Squirrels, just ask Imagenet or Google if you prefer. With so much progress in pattern recognition I am happily now looking more deeply into how to use Computer Vision to promote better Communication with Computers.
By the way, this particualr squirrel is a Gold-mantled Ground Squirrel enjoying a warm summer day in Rocky Mountain National Park.
