According to the authors of a new study, recreating the beam\u2019s path through Bugorski\u2019s skull was particularly challenging due to a lack of original images or medical documents. All they had to go on was a single, grainy photograph showing the approximate course of the ray through the physicist\u2019s swollen head.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n \u24d8\u00a0IFLScience is not responsible for content shared from external sites.<\/p>\n When creating a 3D rendering of the image, however, the authors noticed that the original photo is somewhat deceptive, as it appears to be a profile shot when in fact it depicts a slight rotation of Bugorski\u2019s face. This enabled them to reconstruct the line of damage, which passes mostly through Bugorski\u2019s temporal lobe, close to the point at which it meets the occipital lobe.<\/p>\n This, say the researchers, probably explains why the Soviet<\/a> scientist began experiencing epileptic seizures following the accident.<\/p>\n The reconstructed proton beam trajectory also crosses the bony labyrinth of Bugorski\u2019s left ear, which makes sense given that he became deaf on this side after the incident. He also experienced numbness on the left side of his face, which the researchers say may be due to the beam damaging either the infraorbital nerve or the temporal bone, before exiting near his left nostril.<\/p>\n The reconstruction shows how the beam ripped through Bugorski’s brain.<\/p>\n Image credit: Moraes and Moura, OrtogOnlineMag, 2025 (CC BY 4.0<\/a>)<\/p>\n \u201cIt is noteworthy that, despite the injury occurring in a region associated with language (heard, spoken, and read) in the temporal lobe, and at the boundary with the occipital lobe, related to vision, the accident, apart from the expected fatigue, appears not to have significantly impaired Bugorski\u2019s perception or intellectual faculties,\u201d write the authors.<\/p>\n Perhaps more surprising is the fact that he survived at all, given that the accident exposed him to radiation<\/a> levels of between 200,000 and 300,000 rads \u2013 up to 600 times the lethal dose for humans<\/a>. Amazingly, Bugorski even finished his work day as normal, and didn\u2019t even seek medical attention until the following morning.<\/p>\n Around a year and a half later, the scientist returned to work, later completing a PhD and remaining in his job until the age of 77. They certainly don\u2019t make particle accelerator physicists like him anymore!<\/p>\n The study is available on OrtogOnlineMag<\/a>.<\/p>\n ![\"Reconstruction](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Bugorski_4_recon.jpg\" "\\"Reconstruction")
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