Abstract: Autonomous vehicles are capable of executing missions that abide by on-street rules or regulations, while also being able to seamlessly transition to and from “zones,” including off-street zones, with their our set(s) of rules or regulations. An on-board memory stores roadgraph information. An on-board computer is operative to execute commanded driving missions using the roadgraph information, including missions with one or more zones, each zone being defined by a sub-roadgraph with its own set of zone-specific driving rules and parameters. A mission may be coordinated with one or more payload operations, including zone with “free drive paths” as in a warehouse facility with loading and unloading zones to pick up payloads and place them down, or zone staging or entry points to one or more points of payload acquisition or placement. The vehicle may be a warehousing vehicle such as a forklift.

Abstract: The subject invention features methods for predicting whether a subject at risk of developing Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) will develop ARDS by determining the amount of elafin present in a subject sample, or by determining the ration of elafin:neutrophil elastase in a subject sample. The invention also features methods for monitoring the efficacy of a treatment regimen for ARDS as well as methods of treatment for ARDS. The invention also features methods to determine a subject's predisposition for developing ARDS by determining whether certain genomic polymorphisms are present in the subject's DNA.