Louis I. Kahn and Richard Kelly: collaborative design in creation of the luminous environment

As one of the most prominent architects of the twentieth century, Louis I. Kahn aspired to use natural light to shape his architecture. The lighting designer Richard Kelly, one of his close collaborators, had significant influence on modern architectural lighting design in the twentieth century. Kahn and Kelly designed the luminous environments in three art-gallery and museum buildings, The Yale University Art Gallery, the Kimbell Art Museum and the Yale Center for British Art. Collaboration between the architect and the lighting designer resulted in well-resolved lighting solutions. This research investigated the collaboration between Louis I. Kahn and Richard Kelly from both theoretical and pragmatic perspectives. In terms of the theoretical perspective, a detailed overview of their collaborative work is provided through literature review. In terms of the pragmatic perspective, the background of their cooperation and the technical details are presented. In addition, daylighting performance analysis of these three buildings through digital modelling was undertaken. This study found that the lighting design solutions produced together by Louis I. Kahn and Richard Kelly, especially the way of using daylight, have had significant impact on architectural space and the luminous environment. More importantly, this kind of collaborative working method could provide a useful reference and guidance for contemporary architecture and lighting design

Potential benefit of nizatidine in female patients with idiopathic xerostomia: A pilot study

Xerostomia is a frequent salivary complaint, especially in elderly people, typically caused by Sjogren’s syndrome, uncontrolled diabetes mellitus, radiation to the head and neck, chemotherapy, and different medications. Above all, drugs are the most common reason of reduced salivation, and the medications most commonly implicated are tricyclic antidepressants, antipsychotics, atropinics, beta-blockers and antihistamines. Nizatidine is a histamine H2-receptor antagonist used in the treatment of peptic ulcer and gastro-esophageal reflux disease. In the past, salivary secretion has been reported to increase when nizatidine was administered to healthy volunteers, patients with dry mouth and patients with primary Sjo¨ gren’s syndrome. In the present study, we tried to analyze the efficacy of nizatidine on both dry mouth symptoms and salivary secretion in patients affected by idiopathic xerostomia

Characterization and geotechnical investigations of a riverbank failure in Florence, Italy, UNESCO world heritage site

On May 25, 2016, an artificial riverbank of the Arno River collapsed just upstream from the famous Ponte Vecchio bridge in the city of Florence, Italy, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. An analysis of the failure was performed to identify the damage condition of the involved structures, to define the causes of the failure, and preserve the site. This study was based on borehole integration and geotechnical characterization, terrestrial laser scanner (TLS) and digital photogrammetry (DP), bathymetric and geophysical surveys, riverbank stability analysis, and wall seismic vibrations assessment. The TLS survey results were used to characterize the three-dimensional (3D) wall deformations pattern, the landslide geometry, and to define the involved volumes. The riverbank stability analysis demonstrates that the lower safety factor was obtained in the case of complete saturation of filling materials and low river level in accordance with the major cause of collapse being attributed to the loss of water from subterranean pipes

Management and outcomes of three cases of rhinocerebral mucormycosis

Mucormycosis is a rare opportunistic infection caused by fungi belonging to Mucorales order. The infection usually starts in the middle or inferior nasal meatus and then spreads to the paranasal sinuses and the orbit. Then it reaches the brain through the ethmoid and the orbit apex and can lead to lethargy, paralysis, and death. The majority of cases of rhinocerebral mucormycosis are diagnosed in patients with immunologic and metabolic disorders. Early diagnosis is fundamental, and so is medical therapy with amphotericin B along with surgical toilet of the compromised tissues. This article presents and discusses the management of 3 cases of rhinocerebral mucormycosis with different onsets, progressions, and outcomes. (Oral Surg Oral Med Oral Pathol Oral Radiol Endod 2011;112:e69-e74