Don't eat toadstool: a service for recognizing mushrooms from photographs. Mushroom picking with a smartphone: review of mobile applications Find mushrooms by photo
A real find for mushroom pickers!
The “Mushrooms” application for iPhone and iPad received an upgrade in the form of image recognition based on Artificial Intelligence - AI. At the same time, AI itself, as a “mushroom picker’s assistant,” was subjected to hurricane criticism from mycologists, who declared the technology the deadliest since the invention of the smartphone. The developers of the “mushroom” neural network ask you to remain calm.
Mushroom, I know you!
Application " Our Mushrooms"(name in the App Store "Mushrooms: The Big Encyclopedia") from Russian developers was released in 2011 and at that time was the only one of its kind. It was a rare case when the developers were both mushroom pickers and users of their own application, so they did it both for others and for themselves.
Initially, “Mushrooms” was simply a convenient reference book, which used a search by descriptions, images and parameters for identification. In addition, the ability to add photo notes to the database with automatic addition of the object to the user map of “mushroom places” was implemented. The logic of the application included cross-references to “similar mushrooms” with priority delivery of information about those hazardous to health.
For 6 years, the developers have kept “Mushrooms” up-to-date on new versions of iOS, expanded the database and translated it into English.
The application has been used by tens of thousands of mushroom pickers and has received good reviews (average rating 4.7 out of 5). And many users asked to supplement the program with recognition. Taking a photo of a mushroom and immediately knowing what to do next: put it in a basket or throw it away and immediately wash your hands - the dream of any mushroom picker faced with the unknown. "Great idea!" – the developers decided and finalized the application in collaboration with colleagues from the Dato ML company.
What are mycologists against?
When the work, which began in January 2017 and took 5 months, was completed, and thousands of mushroom pickers had already successfully used the new function, at the end of July an article by Doctor of Microbiology Colin Davison was published in the American edition of The Verge, which indirectly related to the Mushrooms application.
The title was impressive: A ‘Potentially Deadly’Mushroom-Identifying App Highlights the Danger of Bad AI’.
The article was about a certain application for recognizing mushrooms from photographs, which appeared in the AppStore and Google Play. The developers promised users 100% identification of mushroom hunting trophies thanks to Artificial Intelligence. Colin Davison called it "the most potentially deadly program since the beginning of the mobile revolution."
So another hate arose around the topic of AI, which is simply doomed to popularity since the release of the first “Terminator”. Now that the technology has become available for mass use, it is constantly in the focus of attention of specialists, marketers, and a host of other people with different levels of knowledge about the subject. And most of them desperately lie, for a variety of reasons: some from ignorance, others to attract attention, and others to endow products with non-existent advantages.
Machine look
As mentioned above, the new identification function in the Mushrooms application was implemented using Artificial Intelligence. In this case, it is based on a neural network.
A neural network consists of many simple elements and is an analogue of the human brain, capable of making some independent decisions based on analysis of an array of information.
Unlike universal natural intelligence, a neural network always has specialization, due to which its performance in a specific type of activity is many times higher than human capabilities. For example, the artificial intelligence AlphaGo is the best in the world at playing Go, but will not be able to distinguish a cube from a ball, because this is not its specialization.
One of the first and most developed methods of using neural networks is considered to be pattern recognition, which as a technology was described back in the second half of the last century under the name “machine vision”.
The main difference between a neural network and a computer is that it is not programmed, but trained (the parameters of each element change depending on the results obtained). Based on the results of training the neural network, you can present data (in our case, images) that are initially unknown to it. As a result, she correctly identifies the image, relying on her experience of processing millions of similar images and complex decision-making algorithms.
How a neural network was taught to look for mushrooms
If we extremely simplify the description of the machine learning process, it will look like this: the “teacher” shows the “newborn” neural network an image, based on which the network makes an assumption, for example, whether it is a mushroom or not. Then the mentor reports the correct answer, and the network “changes” a little, noting to itself that it really was a mushroom (or was not). The lesson is then repeated with another image. And so on up to several tens of millions of times, depending on the complexity of the task. As a result, the answers become more and more “meaningful” and correct.
To create a truly “good” Ai, you need to take into account a lot of other aspects: network configuration, control of the risk of overtraining, etc. All of them, including the number of “lessons” and the quality of the “training material”, can critically influence the result. Therefore, two neural networks (like two different people) designed to solve the same problem can behave completely differently. One may turn out to be unpredictable and dangerous, while the other may be accurate, but cautious in its assessments.
But let's return to the “mushroom” application. It is based on a specially trained deep convolutional neural network (CNN), which is capable of determining the type of mushroom in an image. The user points the camera at the mushroom, takes a photo, and after a split second the neural network issues a recommendation.
During the training, a huge set of data was used, obtained from one of the specialized institutes, as well as collected independently from open sources. On average, 1200 (but not less than 1000) photographs were selected for each type of mushroom. For poisonous ones, the sample was even larger to increase recognition accuracy.
As a result, the number of trained parameters in the neural network is more than 20 million, the number of layers is more than 100. This allows you to combine speed and accuracy in the final recognition.
Special GPU servers from Amazon were used for training, which made it possible to reduce the time of the final session to several hours. For example, on a regular personal computer, a similar operation could take up to several months.
But even such impressive results do not give grounds to claim that it was possible to create 100% “identification”. Even professional mycologists cannot recognize mushrooms with such accuracy.
In addition to recognition, “NEURO-search” in the “Mushrooms” application provides a list of similar options and an assessment of the accuracy of the assumption. Each “similar mushroom” has an encyclopedic description and images, that is, the application contains maximum information for making a decision and can assess risks.
Intelligence "bad" and "good"
The quality of Artificial Intelligence depends on how many resources and efforts are invested in its training, as well as on the correct configuration of the neural network and many other parameters. Even a schoolchild can now develop a program for identifying images using manuals published on the Internet. This level will be the solution.
The application, which was written about in The Verge, was harshly criticized precisely because of its “guaranteed accurate identification of mushrooms”, dividing them into edible and inedible. This is impossible even in theory. At the same time, users were not provided with any additional information about the word absolutely - just the options “take/don’t take.”
After the devastating article, the description of the application was first adjusted from “identification of all mushrooms” to “recognition of domestic mushrooms”, then the specialization “only truffles” remained (this relates to the question of what sample of images was used to train the neural network). The application has now been removed from the App Store.
An example of two approaches to creating applications shows that AI created for use in the same field can indeed turn out to be “bad” or “good”, and through no fault of its own. It will be “bad” if its creators are not competent enough and do not have the techniques or resources to “train” and “educate” the neural network. But if the issue of serving man and his interests is at the forefront, then Artificial Intelligence will always behave properly.
“Silent Hunt” 2017, meanwhile, is far from over. The season of the royal autumn mushroom is ahead - white milk mushroom and its simpler lamellar relatives. By the way, it is the identification of lamellar mushrooms that causes problems even for experienced mushroom pickers. Another reason to go into the forest, armed not only with a knife, but also with Artificial Intelligence. Pay attention to "Mushrooms: The Great Encyclopedia".
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) Shown 1 - 13 from 264 pages | page 1 from 21MOSCOW, August 17 - RIA Novosti, Dmitry Filonov. Experienced mushroom pickers know hundreds of species of mushrooms by sight. But what should the children of the “concrete jungle”, who have only ever seen mushrooms in the nearest supermarket, do? Of course, pick up a smartphone or tablet and go to the nearest forest - not forgetting to first download to your device a set of applications for the neophyte mushroom picker selected by RIA Novosti.
Recognize the enemy by sight
Owners of smartphones on the Android platform were luckier with mushrooms than iPhone owners - the number of identifiers for the Google system is noticeably greater. Maybe the developers don’t believe that the owners of Apple gadgets are even capable of such madness?
When you search for “mushrooms,” one of the first results in the Google Play app store is the “Encyclopedia of Mushrooms” application. According to its description, it contains information about 345 species of mushrooms, which are divided into three categories - edible, conditionally edible and poisonous. You can find the desired mushroom in this directory either by its name, or by selecting a similar picture in the application.
Judging by the stated figures, this program is the most extensive reference book we have encountered. True, for installation it requires downloading additional modules, it works slowly, and in the extensive catalog of spindle-footed collibias you can get lost out of habit. Therefore, applications with a selection of a smaller number, but really common mushrooms, are no less relevant.
For example, the application "Mushrooms. Directory" contains information about 46 edible mushrooms and 30 poisonous ones. The program implements a search by the name of the mushroom, and also has the headings “Collecting Places” and “Mushroom Picker’s Memo,” from which the inquisitive mind of a novice mushroom picker will learn exactly where to hunt, as well as how not to get lost in the forest.
Alexander Kazakov
Owners of smartphones on the Android platform can go into the forest without fear: many “mushroom” applications have been developed for their gadgets
Interestingly, the same developer offers the Intuition Trainer application. It will probably help in cases where information about the found mushroom is not in the reference book.
Another interesting, but paid application (31.57 rubles) is “Mushrooms, Berries, Herbs”. With its help, you can collect a full bucket, basket, bag, or, as they say in St. Petersburg, a bag, not only of mushrooms, but also of other gifts of nature. By the way, the program also contains a calendar for collecting all this useful flora.
Owners of iPhone and iPad are forced to settle for less. Not only are there fewer mushroom guides in the Apple app store, but they are also all paid. However, forests are fraught with many secrets and mysteries, so it is possible that a keen eye will be able to detect an Android smartphone forgotten on a stump.
The cheapest app on the App Store for mushroom pickers costs $0.99 and is called iPoMushrooms. In addition to the classic directory of edible mushrooms, it also contains recipes for various dishes, as well as a “First Aid Kit” section, from which you can find out, for example, what to do in case of mushroom poisoning.
For those willing to pay the hefty $11.99 for the app, Nature Mobile's Mushrooms Pro guide is recommended. This application contains information about 300 types of mushrooms and 2 thousand pictures. At the same time, there is a step-by-step identification of the mushroom, which allows you to determine its name by answering a number of questions.
Valery Gordienko
The ideal mushroom reference application for both Android smartphones and iPhone has not yet been developed - you have to turn to your own experience and intuition
In addition, this application provides the ability to leave notes for each type of mushroom and attach geographic coordinates, which will help in the future to find a mushroom place once encountered. For inexperienced mushroom pickers, we note that if a mushroom is cut and not pulled out of the ground, then another one will grow in its place. So, at least, says popular wisdom.
The Apple App Store contains several other mushroom guides that cost a reasonable $2-3. True, not all of them are equally useful. For example, the Fungi application, although it contains information about 600 types of mushrooms, does not support the Russian language, which can make oral consultations with a professional mushroom picker you meet in the forest somewhat difficult.
Unfortunately, it was not possible to find an ideal mushroom reference application for both Android smartphones and iPhone. Among the functions of such programs, I would like to see the ability to identify a mushroom by its photograph, as well as an augmented reality system that, for example, would highlight on the screen pictures of the forest from the built-in camera of the device, potentially mushroom places.
And, of course, every such application simply must have functions similar to the Instagram photo application, so that you can take a photo of the largest mushroom, apply a stylish filter to the photo, and publish it on Facebook and Twitter.
On mosquitoes with a smartphone
Having solved the main problem - picking mushrooms, lovers of nature walks may still be left with a number of side problems. For example, how to get back if there are only fir trees and birches around, and the right direction is unknown.
For those who are not yet fluent in old-fashioned methods, such as determining the cardinal directions by anthills or moss on trees, you can install one of the free mapping applications.
Considering the very real possibility of a lack of cellular communication in the forest, it is better if the program has offline maps that can be downloaded in advance.
Yandex.Maps for iPhone and Android this year acquired a similar function, although the list of downloadable territories is limited mainly to cities, with the exception of the Moscow, Leningrad region and Crimea. However, experienced mushroom pickers manage to find prey anywhere, even within city limits.
It may be a good idea to install an app to record tracks. For example, Google offers the My Tracks program for Android smartphones. It is capable of recording information about a person’s movement based on data from the GPS receiver built into the device. If you get lost, you can return to your starting point by repeating your path in the opposite direction. And then you can brag about the track to your friends, and mark the most mushroom places on the map.
Similar applications exist for iPhone. For example, free RunKeeper or paid GPS Kit. Such applications can also be used during morning runs, because a real mushroom picker must be as healthy as a moose in order to walk tens of kilometers in search of prey.
Rosleskhoz
In order not to get lost in the forest, it is recommended to install a couple of relevant applications on your gadget
Owners of Apple devices, deprived of identifying mushrooms, are taking revenge in the field of emergency evacuation from the forest. In addition to the proprietary “Find iPhone” service, which allows the mushroom picker’s relatives to discover the place of his wanderings (if they have a cellular connection and know the App Store password, of course), for Apple gadgets there is also an official application of the Ministry of Emergency Situations - “Mobile Rescuer”. It not only allows you to send an SOS signal to emergency services and a pre-defined list of telephone numbers, but also contains a guide to first aid and finding medical facilities.
Similar applications, however, can be found for the Android platform. For example, One Touch SOS also sends messages to a specified list of contacts when you press the “red button”, informing them of the user’s location data, and the Where’s My Droid application will help you find a lost person without help from him.
It is possible that the search for the unlucky mushroom picker may drag on for several hours. In this case, an application with a star map will help him pass the time studying celestial bodies, and a program that simulates the burning of a candle will make the waiting process more comfortable.
And the last tip - don't forget to charge your smartphone before leaving home. If the cellular signal is weak or absent, battery power can be used up very quickly. To extend battery life, you can temporarily disable all wireless interfaces by selecting airplane mode in the device settings.
Not all talkers are equally useful
When compiling the review, we encountered ambiguous interpretations of the edibility of some mushrooms by different programs. For example, some applications classify many representatives of the talker group as conditionally edible, while other programs prefer to consider them poisonous. Therefore, do not forget that application developers are not responsible for your health, and even usually harmless mushrooms can be dangerous in some cases.
MOSCOW, August 17 - RIA Novosti, Dmitry Filonov. Experienced mushroom pickers know hundreds of species of mushrooms by sight. But what should the children of the “concrete jungle”, who have only ever seen mushrooms in the nearest supermarket, do? Of course, pick up a smartphone or tablet and go to the nearest forest - not forgetting to first download to your device a set of applications for the neophyte mushroom picker selected by RIA Novosti.
Recognize the enemy by sight
Owners of smartphones on the Android platform were luckier with mushrooms than iPhone owners - the number of identifiers for the Google system is noticeably greater. Maybe the developers don’t believe that the owners of Apple gadgets are even capable of such madness?
When you search for “mushrooms,” one of the first results in the Google Play app store is the “Encyclopedia of Mushrooms” application. According to its description, it contains information about 345 species of mushrooms, which are divided into three categories - edible, conditionally edible and poisonous. You can find the desired mushroom in this directory either by its name, or by selecting a similar picture in the application.
Judging by the stated figures, this program is the most extensive reference book we have encountered. True, for installation it requires downloading additional modules, it works slowly, and in the extensive catalog of spindle-footed collibias you can get lost out of habit. Therefore, applications with a selection of a smaller number, but really common mushrooms, are no less relevant.
For example, the application "Mushrooms. Directory" contains information about 46 edible mushrooms and 30 poisonous ones. The program implements a search by the name of the mushroom, and also has the headings “Collecting Places” and “Mushroom Picker’s Memo,” from which the inquisitive mind of a novice mushroom picker will learn exactly where to hunt, as well as how not to get lost in the forest.
Alexander Kazakov
Owners of smartphones on the Android platform can go into the forest without fear: many “mushroom” applications have been developed for their gadgets
Interestingly, the same developer offers the Intuition Trainer application. It will probably help in cases where information about the found mushroom is not in the reference book.
Another interesting, but paid application (31.57 rubles) is “Mushrooms, Berries, Herbs”. With its help, you can collect a full bucket, basket, bag, or, as they say in St. Petersburg, a bag, not only of mushrooms, but also of other gifts of nature. By the way, the program also contains a calendar for collecting all this useful flora.
Owners of iPhone and iPad are forced to settle for less. Not only are there fewer mushroom guides in the Apple app store, but they are also all paid. However, forests are fraught with many secrets and mysteries, so it is possible that a keen eye will be able to detect an Android smartphone forgotten on a stump.
The cheapest app on the App Store for mushroom pickers costs $0.99 and is called iPoMushrooms. In addition to the classic directory of edible mushrooms, it also contains recipes for various dishes, as well as a “First Aid Kit” section, from which you can find out, for example, what to do in case of mushroom poisoning.
For those willing to pay the hefty $11.99 for the app, Nature Mobile's Mushrooms Pro guide is recommended. This application contains information about 300 types of mushrooms and 2 thousand pictures. At the same time, there is a step-by-step identification of the mushroom, which allows you to determine its name by answering a number of questions.
Valery Gordienko
The ideal mushroom reference application for both Android smartphones and iPhone has not yet been developed - you have to turn to your own experience and intuition
In addition, this application provides the ability to leave notes for each type of mushroom and attach geographic coordinates, which will help in the future to find a mushroom place once encountered. For inexperienced mushroom pickers, we note that if a mushroom is cut and not pulled out of the ground, then another one will grow in its place. So, at least, says popular wisdom.
The Apple App Store contains several other mushroom guides that cost a reasonable $2-3. True, not all of them are equally useful. For example, the Fungi application, although it contains information about 600 types of mushrooms, does not support the Russian language, which can make oral consultations with a professional mushroom picker you meet in the forest somewhat difficult.
Unfortunately, it was not possible to find an ideal mushroom reference application for both Android smartphones and iPhone. Among the functions of such programs, I would like to see the ability to identify a mushroom by its photograph, as well as an augmented reality system that, for example, would highlight on the screen pictures of the forest from the built-in camera of the device, potentially mushroom places.
And, of course, every such application simply must have functions similar to the Instagram photo application, so that you can take a photo of the largest mushroom, apply a stylish filter to the photo, and publish it on Facebook and Twitter.
On mosquitoes with a smartphone
Having solved the main problem - picking mushrooms, lovers of nature walks may still be left with a number of side problems. For example, how to get back if there are only fir trees and birches around, and the right direction is unknown.
For those who are not yet fluent in old-fashioned methods, such as determining the cardinal directions by anthills or moss on trees, you can install one of the free mapping applications.
Considering the very real possibility of a lack of cellular communication in the forest, it is better if the program has offline maps that can be downloaded in advance.
Yandex.Maps for iPhone and Android this year acquired a similar function, although the list of downloadable territories is limited mainly to cities, with the exception of the Moscow, Leningrad region and Crimea. However, experienced mushroom pickers manage to find prey anywhere, even within city limits.
It may be a good idea to install an app to record tracks. For example, Google offers the My Tracks program for Android smartphones. It is capable of recording information about a person’s movement based on data from the GPS receiver built into the device. If you get lost, you can return to your starting point by repeating your path in the opposite direction. And then you can brag about the track to your friends, and mark the most mushroom places on the map.
Similar applications exist for iPhone. For example, free RunKeeper or paid GPS Kit. Such applications can also be used during morning runs, because a real mushroom picker must be as healthy as a moose in order to walk tens of kilometers in search of prey.
Rosleskhoz
In order not to get lost in the forest, it is recommended to install a couple of relevant applications on your gadget
Owners of Apple devices, deprived of identifying mushrooms, are taking revenge in the field of emergency evacuation from the forest. In addition to the proprietary “Find iPhone” service, which allows the mushroom picker’s relatives to discover the place of his wanderings (if they have a cellular connection and know the App Store password, of course), for Apple gadgets there is also an official application of the Ministry of Emergency Situations - “Mobile Rescuer”. It not only allows you to send an SOS signal to emergency services and a pre-defined list of telephone numbers, but also contains a guide to first aid and finding medical facilities.
Similar applications, however, can be found for the Android platform. For example, One Touch SOS also sends messages to a specified list of contacts when you press the “red button”, informing them of the user’s location data, and the Where’s My Droid application will help you find a lost person without help from him.
It is possible that the search for the unlucky mushroom picker may drag on for several hours. In this case, an application with a star map will help him pass the time studying celestial bodies, and a program that simulates the burning of a candle will make the waiting process more comfortable.
And the last tip - don't forget to charge your smartphone before leaving home. If the cellular signal is weak or absent, battery power can be used up very quickly. To extend battery life, you can temporarily disable all wireless interfaces by selecting airplane mode in the device settings.
Not all talkers are equally useful
When compiling the review, we encountered ambiguous interpretations of the edibility of some mushrooms by different programs. For example, some applications classify many representatives of the talker group as conditionally edible, while other programs prefer to consider them poisonous. Therefore, do not forget that application developers are not responsible for your health, and even usually harmless mushrooms can be dangerous in some cases.
Now the mushroom picking season is in full swing, but not everyone is well versed in them and can confuse edible with poisonous. And here special applications for smartphones come to the rescue, which can determine the name of the mushroom from a photograph. We decided to check how such a program works in real life.
How is a mushroom variety determined?
To get 90% accuracy in one of the most popular such programs, several conditions must be met. For example, mushrooms are best photographed in their natural environment. The full list of requirements is in the picture below, some of the definitions from there are very funny (apparently, they are automatically translated by Google).
We try to find a suitable picture of an oil can on the Internet and upload it to the application on the smartphone. After a quick scan, the result is displayed on the display - with a probability of 71.1%, the photo shows an oil can.
It is important that the application only works when connected to the Internet, which means that in a deep forest it may be useless.
Photo we uploaded 
The result that the program produced There are practically no problems with identifying the type of mushroom from photographs taken in good lighting without “extra” objects in the background.
Test on Komarovka
To test the performance of the application in real conditions, we went to the Komarovsky market. There are a lot of mushrooms sold there - you can choose from boletus, boletus, honey mushrooms, saffron milk caps and some other varieties.
First, we check whether the program can correctly determine honey mushrooms. When scanning photographs of them in a jar, we get a result of 19.9%. Taking into account the fact that we deliberately went against the conditions that the image must meet, the application coped well with its task and correctly identified the type of mushroom.
In the center there are honey mushrooms in the jars 
Let's move on and try to scan saffron milk caps. Here the program crashed and flatly refused to determine their variety. Possible options are oak or tinder fungus; saffron milk caps are not on the list. Scanning one individual mushroom under the recommended shooting conditions did not change anything.
Saffron milk caps 
Borovik The application correctly identified the “white mushroom” in the picture with a probability of 77.8%. Indeed, the porcini mushroom belongs to the boletus genus, so the answer can be considered correct.
Boletus 
In most cases, the app correctly identifies the type of mushroom and shows whether it is edible or not. True, for the most accurate result, the image must comply with many parameters, which are not always easy to fully comply with.
But if there is no other way to check the mushroom, then the application can be used. The only disadvantage is the inability to determine the type of mushroom without an Internet connection.
