From collective adaptive systems to human centric computation and back: spatial model checking for medical imaging

Recent research on formal verification for Collective Adaptive Systems (CAS) pushed advancements in spatial and spatio-temporal model checking, and as a side result provided novel image analysis methodologies, rooted in logical methods for topological spaces. Medical Imaging (MI) is a field where such technologies show potential for ground-breaking innovation. In this position paper, we present a preliminary investigation centred on applications of spatial model checking to MI. The focus is shifted from pure logics to a mixture of logical, statistical and algorithmic approaches, driven by the logical nature intrinsic to the specification of the properties of interest in the field. As a result, novel operators are introduced, that could as well be brought back to the setting of CAS.