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A case of Graves′ opthalmopathy treated with external radiotherapy has been reported. The role of radiation therapy in the management of this disease entity in context to the modern supervoltage era has ben discussed.

We investigate the effect of a number of design alternatives on the safety and capacity of an Automated Highway System. Our methodology makes use of two computational tools, designed to highlight the fundamental limitations of the vehicle dynamics, sensing and control strategies and inter-vehicle communication. The first tool produces the minimum spacing necessary for two vehicles not to collide, as a function of their state and capabilities. The second tool investigates the multiple collisions that may occur in a string of vehicles if the spacing requirements of the first tool are violated. The example we have in mind is the emergency deceleration of a platoon of vehicles. We use the tools to establish limits on the safety and throughput that can be expected if different automated highway concepts are implemented. Our results indicate that on an Automated Highway System that supports platooning, severe intra-platoon collisions may occur under emergency situations. We analyze the effect of the collisions on both safety and throughput and investigate the sensitivity of these quantities to a number of design parameters. We identify as the most important parameters inter-vehicle coordination, on-line braking capability estimation and platoon organization in terms of braking capability.

This paper compares safety of automated and manual highway systems with respect to result- ing rear-end collision frequency and severity. The results show that automated driving is safer than the most alert manual drivers, at similar speeds and capacities. We also present a detailed safety-capacity tradeo study for four di erent Automated Highway System concepts that di er in their information structure and separation policy.

In this research, the authors focus on the problem of designing hierarchical, hybrid controllers for large scale systems. An overview of the proposed design process is first given. A modeling formalism is then introduced which allows for the modeling of multi-agent systems with hybrid dynamics in a modular fashion. An algorithm that makes use of ideas from game theory to capture the interaction between the agents, derive continuous controllers and quantify the discrete coordination needed to achieve certain performance objectives is presented. The algorithm is then applied to the problem of automated vehicle following. The study concludes with a summary of the proposed scheme and highlights of the major points.

The vibration response of the plates attached with the free viscoelastic damping layer is investigated to predict the performance of free surface damping treatment. The frequency-dependent dynamic properties of the viscoelastic layer are expressed by fractional Kelvin-Voigt model. A simple and efficient identification approach based on the gradient-based optimization principle is employed to evaluate the viscoelastic model parameters from the experimental data. Both classical and fractional Kelvin-Voigt models are employed to describe the viscoelasticity, and the corresponding model parameters are identified. Further, the application of these identified parameters in the modeling and analyzing of real viscoelastic composite structures is demonstrated through quantitative examples. Step load-induced transient responses of the viscoelastic structures modeled using the classical and fractional model parameters are investigated and compared, to demonstrate the consequences of unknowingly using the classical Kelvin-Voigt model. The effects of the viscoelastic layer thickness on the transient response of the two-layered plate are also studied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Naegleria fowleri is a thermophilic free-living amoeba that can cause a rare and fatal infection of the brain called primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM). PAM is a serious public health concern, as it affects mostly young and healthy individuals who are exposed to warm freshwater environments, and has a mortality rate of approximately 98%. The infection occurs when the amoeba enters the nasal cavity during swimming or other recreational activities, and migrates to the brain through the olfactory nerve. In the brain, the amoeba causes extensive tissue necrosis, haemorrhage, and inflammation, leading to severe neurological symptoms and death within days. The pathogenesis of N. fowleri infection is not fully elucidated, but recent studies have shed some light on the molecular mechanisms that enable the amoeba to invade, proliferate, and evade the host immune system. These mechanisms include the expression of various surface molecules that mediate adhesion, motility, and phagocytosis of host cells, as well as the secretion of proteases and other factors that degrade host extracellular matrix and modulate host immune response. However, there are still many unanswered questions regarding the complex interactions between the amoeba and its host, which limit the development of effective diagnostic and therapeutic strategies. PAM is often misdiagnosed as bacterial meningitis, due to its nonspecific clinical presentation and lack of reliable diagnostic tests. This results in delayed or inappropriate treatment and poor prognosis. Currently, there is no specific or approved treatment for PAM, and the available options are based on empirical evidence or case reports. The survival rate of PAM remains very low, despite the use of multiple drugs and supportive care. Therefore, there is an urgent need for more research on the pathogenesis of N. fowleri and the identification of novel targets for intervention. With the advances in genomic and proteomic technologies, new opportunities have emerged to explore the molecular biology of N. fowleri and its host response. By identifying the genes and proteins involved in key processes such as adhesion, motility, and immune evasion, researchers can design targeted therapies to disrupt these essential functions and prevent or treat infection. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the current state of knowledge on N. fowleri, its pathogenic molecular mechanisms, and the biological processes involved in its infection, as well as the challenges and perspectives for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the authors propose a hierarchical control architecture for dealing with faults an adverse environmental conditions on an Automated Highway System (AHS). The design builds on a previously designed control architecture that works under normal conditions of operation. The faults that are considered in the design are classified according to capabilities remaining on the vehicle or roadside after the fault has occurred. Information about these capabilities is used by the supervisors in each of the layers to select appropriate control strategies. The extended control strategies which are needed by the supervisors of each layer of the hierarchy are outlined, and in certain cases, examples are given of their detailed operation.

In this paper, a case study of the difficulties encountered in the design of hierarchical, hybrid control systems is presented. The Intelligent Vehicle Highway System (IVHS) architecture proposed for vehicle platooning is used as an example. The authors conclude that the conventional tools currently is use for the design and verification of control systems may be inadequate for the design of hierarchical controllers for hybrid systems. The analysis, while indicating certain shortcomings of the current IVHS design, also contains proposed solutions to these problems.

Automation of highways and in particular platooning of vehicles raises a number of control issues. A hierarchical structure is used to address these issues. The work presented here is an attempt at constructing a consistent interface between discrete event and continuous time controllers. The design proposed is a finite state machine that communicates with the discrete controllers by issuing commands that get translated to "jerk" input for the vehicle engine. The operation of the proposed design is tested using COSPAN. By virtue of the fact that the interface touches on both the discrete and continuous worlds, the design might provide insight to interesting problems related to the hybrid nature of the system.