A multi-domain approach to asteroid families identification

Previous works have identified families halos by an analysis in proper elements domains, or by using Sloan Digital Sky Survey-Moving Object Catalog data, fourth release (SDSS-MOC4) multi-band photometry to infer the asteroid taxonomy, or by a combination of the two methods. The limited number of asteroids for which geometric albedo was known until recently discouraged in the past the extensive use of this additional parameter, which is however of great importance in identifying an asteroid taxonomy. The new availability of geometric albedo data from the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) mission for about 100,000 asteroids significantly increased the sample of objects for which such information, with some errors, is now known. In this work we proposed a new method to identify families halos in a multi-domain space composed by proper elements, SDSS-MOC4 (a*,i-z) colors, and WISE geometric albedo for the whole main belt (and the Hungaria and Cybele orbital regions). Assuming that most families were created by the breakup of an undifferentiated parent body, they are expected to be homogeneous in colors and albedo. The new method is quite effective in determining objects belonging to a family halo, with low percentages of likely interlopers, and results that are quite consistent in term of taxonomy and geometric albedo of the halo members.Comment: 23 pages, 18 figures, 6 tables. Accepted for publication in MNRA

Dynamical evolution of V-type asteroids in the central main belt

V-type asteroids are associated with basaltic composition, and are supposed to be fragments of crust of differentiated objects. Most V-type asteroids in the main belt are found in the inner main belt, and are either current members of the Vesta dynamical family (Vestoids), or past members that drifted away. However, several V-type photometric candidates have been recently identified in the central and outer main belt. The origin of this large population of V-type objects is not well understood. Since it seems unlikely that Vestoids crossing the 3J:-1A mean-motion resonance with Jupiter could account for the whole population of V-type asteroids in the central and outer main belt, origin from local sources, such as the parent bodies of the Eunomia, and of the Merxia and Agnia asteroid families, has been proposed as an alternative mechanism. In this work we investigated the dynamical evolution of the V-type photometric candidates in the central main belt, under the effect of gravitational and non-gravitational forces. Our results show that dynamical evolution from the parent bodies of the Eunomia and Merxia/Agnia families on timescales of 2 Byr or more could be responsible for the current orbital location of most of the low-inclined V-type asteroids.Comment: 16 pages, 10 figures, 3 tables. Accepted for publication in MNRA

On the oldest asteroid families in the main belt

Asteroid families are groups of minor bodies produced by high-velocity collisions. After the initial dispersions of the parent bodies fragments, their orbits evolve because of several gravitational and non-gravitational effects,such as diffusion in mean-motion resonances, Yarkovsky and YORP effects, close encounters of collisions, etc. The subsequent dynamical evolution of asteroid family members may cause some of the original fragments to travel beyond the conventional limits of the asteroid family. Eventually, the whole family will dynamically disperse and no longer be recognizable. A natural question that may arise concerns the timescales for dispersion of large families. In particular, what is the oldest still recognizable family in the main belt? Are there any families that may date from the late stages of the Late Heavy Bombardment and that could provide clues on our understanding of the primitive Solar System? In this work, we investigate the dynamical stability of seven of the allegedly oldest families in the asteroid main belt. Our results show that none of the seven studied families has a nominally mean estimated age older than 2.7 Gyr, assuming standard values for the parameters describing the strength of the Yarkovsky force. Most "paleo-families" that formed between 2.7 and 3.8 Gyr would be characterized by a very shallow size-frequency distribution, and could be recognizable only if located in a dynamically less active region (such as that of the Koronis family). V-type asteroids in the central main belt could be compatible with a formation from a paleo-Eunomia family.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figures, 5 tables. Accepted for publication in MNRA

Dynamical evolution and chronology of the Hygiea asteroid family

The asteroid (10) Hygiea is the fourth largest asteroid of the Main Belt, by volume and mass, and it is the largest member of its own family. Previous works investigated the long-term effects of close encounters with (10) Hygiea of asteroids in the orbital region of the family, and analyzed the taxonomical and dynamical properties of members of this family. In this paper we apply the high-quality SDSS-MOC4 taxonomic scheme of DeMeo and Carry (2013) to members of the Hygiea family core and halo, we obtain an estimate of the minimum time and number of encounter necessary to obtain a $3\sigma$ (or 99.7%) compatible frequency distribution function of changes in proper $a$ caused by close encounters with (10) Hygiea, we study the behavior of asteroids near secular resonance configurations, in the presence and absence of the Yarkovsky force, and obtain a first estimate of the age of the family based on orbital diffusion by the Yarkovsky and YORP effects with two methods. The Hygiea family is at least 2 Byr old, with an estimated age of $T = 3200^{+380}_{-120}$ Myr and a relatively large initial ejection velocity field, according to the approach of Vokrouhlick\'{y} et al. (2006a, b). Surprisingly, we found that the family age can be shortened by $\simeq$ 25% if the dynamical mobility caused by close encounters with (10) Hygiea is also accounted for, which opens interesting new research lines for the dynamical evolution of families associated with massive bodies. In our taxonomical analysis of the Hygiea asteroid family, we also identified a new V-type candidate: the asteroid (177904) (2005 SV5). If confirmed, this could be the fourth V-type object ever to be identified in the outer main belt.Comment: 13 page, 15 figures, and 4 table

On the origin of the extremely different solubilities of polyethers in water

The solubilities of polyethers are surprisingly counter-intuitive. The best-known example is the difference between polyethylene glycol ([–CH2–CH2–O–]n) which is infinitely soluble, and polyoxymethylene ([–CH2–O–]n) which is completely insoluble in water, exactly the opposite of what one expects from the C/O ratios of these molecules. Similar anomalies exist for oligomeric and cyclic polyethers. To solve this apparent mystery, we use femtosecond vibrational and GHz dielectric spectroscopy with complementary ab initio calculations and molecular dynamics simulations. We find that the dynamics of water molecules solvating polyethers is fundamentally different depending on their C/O composition. The ab initio calculations and simulations show that this is not because of steric effects (as is commonly believed), but because the partial charge on the O atoms depends on the number of C atoms by which they are separated. Our results thus show that inductive effects can have a major impact on aqueous solubilities

Asymptotic integral kernel for ensembles of random normal matrices with radial potentials

We use the steepest descents method to study the integral kernel of a family of normal random matrix ensembles with eigenvalue distribution P_{N}(z_{1},...,z_{N}) = Z_{N}^{-1} e^{-NSigma_{i=1}^{N}V_{alpha}(z_{i})} Pi_{1leqi<jleqN}|z_{i}-z_{j}|^{2} where V_{alpha}(z)=|z|^{alpha}, z in C and alpha in ]0,infty[. Asymptotic analysis with error estimates are obtained. A corollary of this expansion is a scaling limit for the n-point function in terms of the integral kernel for the classical Segal--Bargmann space

Inducing safer oblique trees without costs

Decision tree induction has been widely studied and applied. In safety applications, such as determining whether a chemical process is safe or whether a person has a medical condition, the cost of misclassification in one of the classes is significantly higher than in the other class. Several authors have tackled this problem by developing cost-sensitive decision tree learning algorithms or have suggested ways of changing the distribution of training examples to bias the decision tree learning process so as to take account of costs. A prerequisite for applying such algorithms is the availability of costs of misclassification. Although this may be possible for some applications, obtaining reasonable estimates of costs of misclassification is not easy in the area of safety. This paper presents a new algorithm for applications where the cost of misclassifications cannot be quantified, although the cost of misclassification in one class is known to be significantly higher than in another class. The algorithm utilizes linear discriminant analysis to identify oblique relationships between continuous attributes and then carries out an appropriate modification to ensure that the resulting tree errs on the side of safety. The algorithm is evaluated with respect to one of the best known cost-sensitive algorithms (ICET), a well-known oblique decision tree algorithm (OC1) and an algorithm that utilizes robust linear programming

Epidemic processes in complex networks

In recent years the research community has accumulated overwhelming evidence for the emergence of complex and heterogeneous connectivity patterns in a wide range of biological and sociotechnical systems. The complex properties of real-world networks have a profound impact on the behavior of equilibrium and nonequilibrium phenomena occurring in various systems, and the study of epidemic spreading is central to our understanding of the unfolding of dynamical processes in complex networks. The theoretical analysis of epidemic spreading in heterogeneous networks requires the development of novel analytical frameworks, and it has produced results of conceptual and practical relevance. A coherent and comprehensive review of the vast research activity concerning epidemic processes is presented, detailing the successful theoretical approaches as well as making their limits and assumptions clear. Physicists, mathematicians, epidemiologists, computer, and social scientists share a common interest in studying epidemic spreading and rely on similar models for the description of the diffusion of pathogens, knowledge, and innovation. For this reason, while focusing on the main results and the paradigmatic models in infectious disease modeling, the major results concerning generalized social contagion processes are also presented. Finally, the research activity at the forefront in the study of epidemic spreading in coevolving, coupled, and time-varying networks is reported.Comment: 62 pages, 15 figures, final versio