A Linear Model for the Estimation of Fuel Consumption and the Impact Evaluation of Advanced Driving Assistance Systems

Reduction of the environmental impact of cars represents one of the biggest transport industry challenges. Beyond more efficient engines, a promising approach is to use eco-driving technologies that help drivers achieve lower fuel consumption and emission levels. In this study, a real-time microscopic fuel consumption model was developed. It was designed to be integrated into simulation platforms for the design and testing of Advanced Driving Assistance Systems (ADAS), aimed at keeping the vehicle within the environmentally friendly driving zone and hence reducing harmful exhaust gases. To allow integration in platforms employed at early stages of ADAS development and testing, the model was kept very simple and dependent on a few easily computable variables. To show the feasibility of the identification of the model (and to validate it), a large experiment involving more than 100 drivers and about 8000 km of driving was carried out using an instrumented vehicle. An instantaneous model was identified based on vehicle speed, acceleration level and gas pedal excursion, applicable in an extra-urban traffic context. Both instantaneous and aggregate validation was performed and the model was shown to estimate vehicle fuel consumption consistently with in-field instantaneous measurements. Very accurate estimations were also shown for the aggregate consumption of each driving session

Erratum to "Validity of Mental Workload Measures in a Driving Simulation Environment"

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Parametric and Non-Parametric Analyses for Pedestrian Crash Severity Prediction in Great Britain

The study aims to investigate the factors that are associated with fatal and severe vehicle– pedestrian crashes in Great Britain by developing four parametric models and five non-parametric tools to predict the crash severity. Even though the models have already been applied to model the pedestrian injury severity, a comparative analysis to assess the predictive power of such modeling techniques is limited. Hence, this study contributes to the road safety literature by comparing the models by their capabilities of identifying the significant explanatory variables, and by their performances in terms of the F-measure, the G-mean, and the area under curve. The analyses were carried out using data that refer to the vehicle–pedestrian crashes that occurred in the period of 2016–2018. The parametric models confirm their advantages in offering easy-to-interpret outputs and understandable relations between the dependent and independent variables, whereas the non-parametric tools exhibited higher classification accuracies, identified more explanatory variables, and provided insights into the interdependencies among the factors. The study results suggest that the combined use of parametric and non-parametric methods may effectively overcome the limits of each group of methods, with satisfactory prediction accuracies and the interpretation of the factors contributing to fatal and serious crashes. In the conclusion, several engineering, social, and management pedestrian safety countermeasures are recommended

Compact S-band linear accelerator system for ultrafast, ultrahigh dose-rate radiotherapy

Radiation therapy is currently the most utilized technique for the treatment of tumors by means ofionizing radiation, such as electrons, protons and x/gamma rays, depending on the type, size and depth ofthe cancer mass. Radiation therapy has in general fulfilled the main requirement of targeting thus damagingthe malignant cells and sparing the healthy tissues as best as possible. In this scenario, electron linearaccelerators have been operated as viable tools for the delivery of both high-energetic electrons and x-raybeams, which are obtained via the bremsstrahlung process of the electrons hitting on a high-Z material.Recently, it has been experimentally demonstrated that ultrahigh dose-rate bursts of electrons and x-raybeams increase the differential response between healthy and tumor tissues. This beneficial response isreferred to as the FLASH effect. For this purpose, we have developed the first dedicated compactS-bandlinear accelerator for FLASH radiotherapy. This linac is optimized for a nominal energy of 7 MeV and apulsed electron beam current of 100 mA and above. The accelerator is mounted on a remote-controlledsystem for preclinical research studies in the FLASH regime. We will show the rf and beam dynamicsdesign of theS-band linac as well as the commissioning and high-power rf tests. Furthermore, the results ofthe dosimetric measurements will be illustrate

Intorno al viaggio musicale di Andrea Zanzotto

Starting from Viaggio musicale, a small book curated by Paolo Cattelan in dialogue with Andrea Zanzotto on the theme of music and poetry, the article follows the path of formation of the poet to music: the nursery rhymes of childhood, Toti Dal Monte and the Opera arias sung by the villagers, the theatre of puppets and music by Margot Galante Garrone, Federico Fellini and Nino Rota, the musicians who met his poetry and set it to music

Matrix metalloproteinase-9 might affect adaptive immunity in non-ST segment elevation acute coronary syndromes by increasing CD31 cleavage on CD4+ T-cells

Aims In patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS), the higher activity of effector T-cells suggests that mechanisms involving adaptive immunity dysregulation might play a role in coronary instability. The shedding of the functional CD31 domain 1-5 leads to uncontrolled lymphocyte activation. In experimental models, matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) has been implicated in endothelial CD31 cleavage. Interestingly, higher serum levels of MMP-9 have been observed in ACS. We aim to investigate the mechanisms underlying CD31 dysregulation in ACS. Methods and results To assess CD31 cleavage on CD4+ T-cells, we analysed by flow cytometry CD4+ T-cells of 30 ACS, 25 stable angina (SA) patients, and 28 controls (CTRL) using two different CD31 antibodies that specifically recognize domain 1-5 or the non-functional membrane-proximal domain 6. The ratio between the domains was significantly lower in ACS than in SA and CTRL (P = 0.002 ACS vs. SA; P = 0.002 ACS vs. CTRL). After stimulation with anti-CD3/CD28, the 1-5/6 domain ratio was significantly lower in ACS than in SA (P = 0.005). ELISA of supernatants obtained from T-cell receptor-stimulated CD4+ T-cells showed higher production of MMP-9 in ACS than in SA (P < 0.001). CD31 domain 1-5 expression in activated CD4+ T-cells from ACS patients increased after treatment with a specific MMP-9 inhibitor (P = 0.042). Conclusion Our study suggest that enhanced MMP-9 release plays a key role in determining the cleavage and shedding of the functional CD31 domain 1-5 in CD4+ T-cells of ACS patients. This mechanism might represent an important therapeutic target to modulate T-cell dysregulation in ACS