What is "normalization"

Normalization \Nor`mal*i*za"tion\, n. Reduction to a standard or normal state.

1882, from normalize + -ation. International political sense recorded from 1938.

n. 1 Any process that makes something more normal or regular, which typically means conforming to some regularity or rule, or returning from some state of abnormality. 2 standardization, act of imposing standards or norms or rules or regulations. 3 (context computing English) In relational database design, a process that breaks down data into record groups for efficient processing, by eliminating redundancy. 4 (context diplomacy English) Process of establishing normal diplomatic relations between two countries 5 (context economics English) globalization, the process of making a worldwide normal and dominant model of production and consumption 6 (context operations English)} Making a normalized production. 7 (context politics English) Sharing or enforcement of standard policies 8 (context sociology English) A process whereby artificial and unwanted norms of behaviour and models of behaviour are made to seem natural and wanted, through propaganda, influence, imitation and conformity. 9 (context statistics English) The process of removing statistical error in repeated measured data.

n. the imposition of standards or regulations; "a committee was appointed to recommend terminological standardization" [syn: standardization, standardisation, normalisation]

In the history of Czechoslovakia, normalization (, ) is a name commonly given to the period 1969–87. It was characterized by initial restoration of the conditions prevailing before the reform period led by Alexander Dubček (1963/1967 – 1968), first of all, the firm rule of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, and subsequent preservation of this new status quo.

"Normalization" is sometimes used in a narrower sense to refer only to the period 1969 to 1971.

The official ideology of normalization is sometimes called Husakism after the Czechoslovak leader Gustáv Husák.

Normalization or normalisation may refer to:

In statistics and applications of statistics, normalization can have a range of meanings. In the simplest cases, normalization of ratings means adjusting values measured on different scales to a notionally common scale, often prior to averaging. In more complicated cases, normalization may refer to more sophisticated adjustments where the intention is to bring the entire probability distributions of adjusted values into alignment. In the case of normalization of scores in educational assessment, there may be an intention to align distributions to a normal distribution. A different approach to normalization of probability distributions is quantile normalization, where the quantiles of the different measures are brought into alignment.

In another usage in statistics, normalization refers to the creation of shifted and scaled versions of statistics, where the intention is that these normalized values allow the comparison of corresponding normalized values for different datasets in a way that eliminates the effects of certain gross influences, as in an anomaly time series. Some types of normalization involve only a rescaling, to arrive at values relative to some size variable. In terms of levels of measurement, such ratios only make sense for ratio measurements (where ratios of measurements are meaningful), not interval measurements (where only distances are meaningful, but not ratios).

In theoretical statistics, parametric normalization can often lead to pivotal quantities – functions whose sampling distribution does not depend on the parameters – and to ancillary statistics – pivotal quantities that can be computed from observations, without knowing parameters.

In image processing, normalization is a process that changes the range of pixel intensity values. Applications include photographs with poor contrast due to glare, for example. Normalization is sometimes called contrast stretching or histogram stretching. In more general fields of data processing, such as digital signal processing, it is referred to as dynamic range expansion.

The purpose of dynamic range expansion in the various applications is usually to bring the image, or other type of signal, into a range that is more familiar or normal to the senses, hence the term normalization. Often, the motivation is to achieve consistency in dynamic range for a set of data, signals, or images to avoid mental distraction or fatigue. For example, a newspaper will strive to make all of the images in an issue share a similar range of grayscale.

Normalization transforms an n-dimensional grayscale image I : {X ⊆ R} → {Min, .., Max} with intensity values in the range (Min,Max), into a new image I : {X ⊆ R} → {newMin, .., newMax} with intensity values in the range (newMin,newMax).

The linear normalization of a grayscale digital image is performed according to the formula

$$I_N=(I-\text{Min})\frac{\text{newMax}-\text{newMin}}{\text{Max}-\text{Min}}+\text{newMin}$$

For example, if the intensity range of the image is 50 to 180 and the desired range is 0 to 255 the process entails subtracting 50 from each of pixel intensity, making the range 0 to 130. Then each pixel intensity is multiplied by 255/130, making the range 0 to 255.

Normalization might also be non linear, this happens when there isn't a linear relationship between I and I. An example of non-linear normalization is when the normalization follows a sigmoid function, in that case, the normalized image is computed according to the formula

$$I_N=(\text{newMax}-\text{newMin})\frac{1}{1+e^{-\frac{I-\beta}{\alpha}}}+\text{newMin}$$

Where α defines the width of the input intensity range, and β defines the intensity around which the range is centered.

Auto-normalization in image processing software typically normalizes to the full dynamic range of the number system specified in the image file format.

"The normalization principle means making available to all people with disabilities patterns of life and conditions of everyday living which are as close as possible to the regular circumstances and ways of life or society." Normalization is a rigorous theory of human services, often applied in disability arenas, however, with a base in the early 1970s, pre-deinstitutionalization period in the US; however, it is one of the strongest and long lasting integration theories in severe disabilities in the world.

Normalization refers to social processes through which ideas and actions come to be seen as ' normal' and become taken-for-granted or 'natural' in everyday life. In sociological theory normalization appears in two forms.

First, the concept of normalization is found in the work of Michel Foucault, especially Discipline and Punish, in the context of his account of disciplinary power. As Foucault used the term, normalization involved the construction of an idealized norm of conduct – for example, the way a proper soldier ideally should stand, march, present arms, and so on, as defined in minute detail – and then rewarding or punishing individuals for conforming to or deviating from this ideal. In Foucault's account, normalization was one of an ensemble of tactics for exerting the maximum social control with the minimum expenditure of force, which Foucault calls "disciplinary power". Disciplinary power emerged over the course of the 19th century, came to be used extensively in military barracks, hospitals, asylums, schools, factories, offices, and so on, and hence became a crucial aspect of social structure in modern societies.

Second, normalization process theory is a middle-range theory used mainly in medical sociology and science and technology studies to provide a framework for understanding the social processes by which new ways of thinking, working and organizing become routinely incorporated in everyday work. Normalization process theory has its roots in empirical studies of technological innovation in healthcare, and especially in the evaluation of complex interventions.