[ITK-dev] ITK Cube Mementos for 4.8.0

[Matt McCormick]

Hi folks,

As a memento of their contributions to the 4.8.0 release, a 3D printed
ITK cube (see attached), was sent to community members.

The cube was derived [1] from a set of code created by community
members Bill Lorensen and Jim Miller written in 1998 that generates a
VTK cube. The model emulates an image on the cover page of the book
Gödel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid (GEB) by Douglas
Hofstadter.

GEB is a favorite tome of many in the community. As summarized by
Wikipedia, it explores “common themes in the lives and works of
logician Kurt Gödel, artist M. C. Escher and composer Johann Sebastian
Bach. GEB expounds concepts fundamental to mathematics, symmetry, and
intelligence. Through illustration and analysis, the book discusses
how self-reference and formal rules allow systems to acquire meaning
despite being made of ‘meaningless’ elements. It also discusses what
it means to communicate, how knowledge can be represented and stored,
the methods and limitations of symbolic representation, and even the
fundamental notion of ‘meaning’ itself.”

This model seemed appropriate for those furthering “Insight into
Images” with the Insight Toolkit. The physical object is a fitting
realization in appreciation of efforts which often are hard to
recognize in the form of ethereal transmissions of patches and
electronic communication.

ITK cubes were sent to authors in the Git logs from v4.7.0..v4.8.0 of
ITK, the ITK Software Guide, ITK Apps, or the ITK Sphinx Examples
repositories [2]. This release’s cube color was blue. To contribute
for the next release, see the contribution instructions in the ITK
Software Guide [3].

There are many ways to be an active member of the community.  Davis
Vigneault, for example, improved our Software Guide documentation.
Or, like Jon Haitz Legarreta, improve testing code coverage.  Or,
improve the Python interface like Michka Popoff.  Or, add new
features, like Nick Tustison.  Or, improve compatibility with
compilers and libraries, like Sean McBride. Or, improve the doxygen
and examples like Arnaud Gelas. We could also use help addressing our
Coverity issues [4]. If there are questions or issues with the
contribution process, please do not hesitate to discuss on the lists.

Thanks to everyone who contributed to ITK 4.8.0, whether it was
through patches, messages on the mailing lists, code reviews, or other
means. 4.9.0 will be an exciting release!


[1] https://github.com/InsightSoftwareConsortium/ITKGEB

[2] http://www.itk.org/Wiki/ITK/Release_4.8_Changed_From_Previous

[3] http://itk.org/ITKSoftwareGuide/html/Book1/ITKSoftwareGuide-Book1.html

[4] https://scan.coverity.com/projects/783
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